PATHF 


WILLIAM-ELLIOT  GRIFHS 


THE  LIBRARY 


[HE  UNIVERSITY 


OF  CALIFORNIA 


LOS  ANGELES 


GIFT  OF 


COMMODORE  BYRON  MCCANDLESS 


THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE 
REVOLUTION 


BOOKS  BY  WILLIAM  E.  GRIFFIS,  D.D. 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  AMERICAN  HISTORY  SERIES. 

THE   ROMANCE   OF   DISCOVERY. 
THE   ROMANCE   OF  COLONIZATION. 
THE   ROMANCE   OF  CONQUEST. 


MRS.  EYRE  TOOK  HER  PLACE  AT  THE  HEAD  OF  THE  TABLE.' 


THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE 
REVOLUTION 

A  Story  of  the  Great  March  into  the 

Wilderness  and  Lake  Region 

of  New  York  in  7779 


BY 


WILLIAM    E.    GRIFFIS 

AUTHOR  OF  "THE   ROMANCE  OF  AMERICAN    HISTORY 

SERIES,"   "THE   MIKADO'S   EMPIRE,"   "BRAVE 

LITTLE  HOLLAND,"  ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED   BY   W.  F.  STECHER 


THIRD   THOUSAND. 


BOSTON   AND   CHICAGO 
W.    A.   WILDE   COMPANY 


COPYRIGHT,  1900, 

BY  W.  A.  WILDE  COMPANY. 

All  rights  reserved. 


THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 


(P 


PREFACE 


WHO  has  done  justice  to  Major  General  John  Sul 
livan  and  to  his  Continental  soldiers  ?  These,  in 
their  great  expedition  of  1779  into  the  lake  region 
of  central  and  western  New  York,  broke  completely 
the  power  of  the  Iroquois  Confederacy.  Why  did 
the  Congress  and  Washington  think  it  necessary  to 
detach  on  this  perilous  expedition,  into  an  unmapped 
wilderness,  one-third  of  the  whole  army  of  the  United 
States?  Why  is  the  whole  subject  so  slurred  over 
or  ignored  by  the  average  historian  ? 

Had  Sullivan  been  "  Braddocked,"  or  met  with 
disaster  in  battle,  by  ambuscade,  by  pestilence,  or 
starvation,  he  would  have  been  better  known.  In 
truth,  he  did  his  work  so  well  that  those  who  write 
history,  and  love  too  much  its  merely  dramatic  side, 
have  been  unfair  to  this  able  officer.  Though  poorly 
provisioned  and  equipped,  he  led  five  thousand  men, 
with  artillery  and  stores,  into  the  river  valleys  and 
pathless  forests  of  western  New  York,  fought  a  great 
and  decisive  battle,  destroyed  the  granaries  of  King 
George  and  his  allies,  paralyzed  the  power  of  both 
Tory  and  savage,  avenged  Wyoming  and  Cherry 

5 

973341 


6  PREFACE 

Valley,  rendered  New  York  for  the  time  uninhabita 
ble  by  the  red  man,  ended  the  dangerous  attacks  on 
Washington's  flank  and  rear,  satisfied  Congress  and 
the  American  people,  and  came  back  with  his  tri 
umphant  veterans  for  the  work  of  Yorktown.  All 
this  he  did  with  the  loss  of  only  forty  men,  or  one 
per  cent  of  his  force. 

It  is  not  the  business  of  the  story-teller  to  satisfy 
fully  the  questioners,  to  whom  the  historian  should 
make  answer,  but  to  tell  how  the  army  went  and 
came,  and  how  the  Continentals  marched,  fought, 
made  paths  and  bridges,  enjoyed  themselves  amid 
their  toils,  told  stories  around  the  camp-fire,  and 
drew  out  from  the  friendly  Oneidas  the  myths  and 
lore  of  the  Iroquois.  Of  the  excitement  of  battle 
and  how  Claes  Vrooman  rescued  the  captives,  his 
sister  and  betrothed,  it  has  been  his  pleasant  task  to 
narrate.  Utilizing  the  local  traditions  of  New  York's 
lake  region,  many  old  letters,  and  local  and  ancestral 
traditions,  he  has  shown  also  how  the  pathfinders  of 
the  Revolution  opened  the  way  for  the  civilization 
of  the  Empire  State  and  the  development  of  the 
great  West.  May  we  never  forget  the  fathers  of  the 
Revolution  and  the  days  when  they  were  young! 

W.  E.  G. 
ITHACA,  N.Y., 
March  24,  1900. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  AN  INTERRUPTED  TEA-PARTY  .        .  .  .11 

II.  BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE  .  25 

III.  THE  FRONTIERSMEN  AT  THE  CAPITAL  .  .      36 

IV.  RAAD  VOOR  DAAD    .        .        .        .  .  .      46 

V.  GAYETY  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  CAMP  .  -57 

VI.    THE  GENERAL  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMIES      67 
VII.     LIFE  IN  A  FRONTIER  TOWN      ....      76 

VIII.      FROM  SCHENECTADY   TO   OTSEGO   LAKE      .  .         83 

IX.  INTO  QUEEN  ESTHER'S  COUNTRY      ...  97 

X.  THE  MAIN  ARMY  STARTS  FROM  EASTON  .        .  no 

XI.  KING  GEORGE'S  GRANARY        .        .        .        .  117 

XII.  THE  CAPTIVE  AT  KENDAIA      .        .        .        .  124 

XIII.  THE  PARSON'S  PESSIMISM  AND  GIDEON'S  OP 

TIMISM  .        .        .        .        ...        .     141 

XIV.  JUST  BEFORE  THE  BATTLE        ....     158 
XV.    THE  DECISIVE  BATTLE  IN  THE  WILDERNESS  .     173 

XVI.    AFTER     THE     BATTLE  —  IN     THE     CHEMUNG 

VALLEY     .    .        ,        .        .        .        .        .188 

XVII.    QUEEN  CATHERINE'S  TOWN  AND  INDIAN  STAR 

LORE    ...        .        ...        .     199 

XVIII.    THE  RESCUE  OF  TRINTJE  VROOMAN        .        .211 


8  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XIX.  CANANDAIGUA  AND  HONEOYE  —  A  SUCCOTASH 

CAMPAIGN 223 

XX.  BOYD  AND  THE  GROVELAND  AMBUSCADE         .  235 

XXI.    ABOUT  FACE  ! 245 

XXII.  MARY  VROOMAN  AND  THE  GLEN  FLOWER       .  255 

XXIII.  LEGENDS  OF  CAYUGA  LAKE      ....  264 

XXIV.  TENTING  ON  THE  OLD  CAMP  GROUND     .        .  279 
XXV.  THE  BANQUET  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  CHEMUNG  287 

XXVI.  BACK  TO  FORT  SULLIVAN         .        .        .        .  298 

XXVII.    THE  AFTERMATH 307 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGB 


"  Mrs.  Eyre  took  her  place  at  the  head  of  the  table  "  . 

Frontispiece  1 7 

"  The  General  extended  his  hand  courteously  to  the 

father  and  son " 46 

"  Here  .  .  .  had  been  held  many  a  council  "        .         .  108 

"...  He  led  the  cheering "                .        .        .        .  1 78 

"...  A  shout  that  woke  the  echoes  of  the  rocks  "      .  253 


CHAPTER   I 

AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY 

THE  year  1779  was  the  darkest  in  our  war  for 
freedom.  Popular  interest  was  at  low  tide. 
The  Continental  army  numbered  only  fifteen  thou 
sand  men.  The  treasury  was  nearly  empty.  The 
bright  hopes  awakened  by  the  French  alliance  had 
given  way  to  disappointment  and  chagrin,  for  the 
great  fleet  sent  by  the  Bourbon  king  had  accom 
plished  nothing.  The  patriots  were  irritated.  Those 
who  were  loyalists  at  heart  longed  to  go  back  to  their 
allegiance  to  King  George,  while  gloating  Tories  actu 
ally  entered  the  camps  of  the  Continental  army  and 
persuaded  the  soldiers  to  desert. 

All  along  the  frontier,  bands  of  savages  ravaged 
the  settlements,  burning  the  houses  and  killing  the 
farmers.  Dashing  out  the  brains  of  those  who  were 
too  young  to  walk,  they  tomahawked,  scalped,  or  led 
into  imprisonment  the  women,  the  boys,  and  the  girls. 


12     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

The  Indian  valleys  in  western  New  York  were  gay 
with  plunder  and  populous  with  captives.  The  bark 
houses  of  the  Iroquois  were  everywhere  decorated 
with  scalps.  Stretched  on  hoops,  dried  or  painted, 
these  represented  every  age  in  life  and  all  colors  of 
hair.  One  could  see  the  golden  ringlets  of  the  little 
child,  the  long  auburn  tresses  of  maiden  or  mother, 
the  short  stubby  growth  and  the  eelskin  queue  of  the 
stalwart  man.  Here  and  there  hung  the  white  and 
gray  locks  of  an  old  man's  scalp  that  was  bald  in  the 
centre.  Many  of  the  great  apartment  houses  of  the 
Iroquois,  in  1779,  were  museums  of  plunder.  They 
showed  that  neither  age  nor  sex  had  been  spared, 
and  that  the  last  count  in.  the  indictment  against 
King  George  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
was  correct. 

What  with  the  conglomerate  British  forces  —  Cana 
dian,  Iroquois,  Irish,  Scotch,  Welsh,  English,  and 
Hessian  —  largely  reenforced,  new  supplies  voted  by 
Parliament  to  continue  the  war,  with  mighty  fleets 
blockading  our  harbors,  British  armies  holding  the 
coast  cities,  and  the  Indians  desolating  our  frontier, 
besides  making  central  New  York  a  granary  of  sup 
plies  for  "  King  George  and  all  his  host,"  it  looked 
indeed  as  if  our  fathers  were  "  between  the  devil  and 
the  deep  sea,"  and  that  the  war  must  stop.  This 
would  mean  that  the  thirteen  states  must  once  more 
become  colonies,  and  the  members  of  the  Continental 
Congress,  who  had  once  by  signatures  in  Indepen- 


AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY  13 

dence  Hall  "  held  together,"  as  Franklin  hinted,  must 
now  on  the  gallows  "  swing  separately." 

At  such  a  time  it  was  like  a  light  shining  in  a  dark 
place  to  see  smiling  folks  who  never  doubted  for  a 
moment  the  success  of  the  Continental  army.  It 
was  a  bright  party  that  assembled  in  the  two-story 
brick  house  in  Kensington,  Philadelphia.  There 
Colonel  Eyre,  once  boat-builder  to  his  Majesty  King 
George  III.,  later  naval  constructor  to  the  Conti 
nental  Congress,  and  then  chief  of  a  regiment  of 
artillery  in  the  Pennsylvania  line,  had  his  home. 
The  two  brothers,  Jabez  and  Emmanuel,  had  years 
before  left  their  kindred  at  Burlington,  in  New  Jersey, 
to  make  their  fortune  in  the  great  city  founded  by 
William  Penn,  then  containing  twenty-five  thousand 
souls.  Not  far  away  from  the  house  stood  the  great 
treaty  tree  under  which  the  son  of  his  Dutch  mother, 
William  Penn,  the  hat-wearer  with  the  hatless,  as 
the  wampum  belt  still  shows,  had  made  that  famous 
covenant  with  the  Indians,  "  Never  sworn  to  and 
never  broken."  In  front  flowed  the  Delaware  River, 
already  beginning  to  hold  upon  its  bosom  the  shad 
ows  of  late  afternoon.  All  around  stretched  those 
green  and  flower-dotted  acres  now  covered  by  houses 
and  docks,  railways  and  machinery  foundries,  forges 
and  trip-hammers,  mighty  chimneys  and  derricks, 
where  are  built  and  launched  the  mighty  steel  battle 
ships  of  the  United  States  navy. 

The  perfume  of  spring  blossoms  was  in  the  air, 


14     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

The  day  was  so  warm  that  Colonel  Eyre's  wife  and 
their  daughter  Margaret  had  spread  the  table  out  in 
the  garden  under  the  apple  trees.  In  those  days  the 
places  of  home  and  business  were  not  far  apart.  In 
the  city  the  great  ships  at  the  wharves  almost  poked 
their  bowsprits  into  the  second-story  windows  of  the 
owners  or  consignees,  whose  offices  were  on  the 
ground  floors  below.  In  front  of  the  Eyre  home  in 
Kensington,  just  across  the  road  and  gently  sloping 
down  to  the  river  side,  was  the  shipyard  whence  had 
been  launched  many  a  gallant  vessel  of  war  floating 
the  thirteen  stripes,  even  before  there  was  a  star  in 
that  blue  field  which  was  yet  to  come. 

It  was  a  daintily  set  table  which  mother,  daughter, 
and  maid  had  arrayed.  On  the  snowy  cloth  fell 
from  time  to  time  petals  from  the  apple  blossoms 
above,  while  all  around  nest  builders  were  calling  to 
their  mates,  making  sweet  music,  and  one  or  two, 
bolder  than  others,  seemed  inclined  to  vary  a  diet  of 
worms  with  a  taste  of  bread  crumbs.  The  silver  tea- 
service  and  a  few  choice  bits  of  china  porcelain  from 
Canton  were  their  special  pride.  The  Eyres  had 
brought  across  sea  from  England  not  a  few  heir 
looms  from  their  old  home  in  Nottinghamshire. 
Indeed,  Margaret,  encouraged  by  her  father,  had 
even  embroidered  the  napkins  of  Irish  linen  with 
the  decussated  and  armored  leg  belonging  to  the 
Eyre  coat  of  arms.  One  can  still  see  the  same 
blazon  on  both  the  gates  of  the  manor  at  Rampton 


AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY  15 

in  England,  the  one  .  of  Tudor  and  the  other  of 
Jacobean  times.  Indeed,  save  for  the  cruel  war, 
which  had  changed  the  garb  of  Jabez  Eyre  from 
plain  drab  to  buff  and  blue,  and  from  a  passive 
Friend  to  a  free  and  fighting  Quaker  for  liberty's 
sake,  the  father  had  hoped  to  visit  dear  old  England 
to  see  the  ancestral  homes.  Now,  however,  while 
Hessian  and  savage  allies  of  King  George  had  to  be 
fought,  Jabez  Eyre's  chief  items  of  care  were  his 
cannon  and  his  comrades. 

"  All  ready,  Margaret ;  call  the  gentlemen." 
Thereupon  issued  from  the  house  and  took  their 
places  around  the  table,  the  host  and  his  friends, 
who,  as  they  sat  down,  made  a  party  of  nine  in  all, 
two  of  whom  wore  the  uniform  of  officers  in  the 
Continental  army,  while  Colonel  Eyre  had  on  the  full 
regimentals  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line,  for  he  was  no 
less  than  a  colonel  of  artillery.  On  his  right  hand 
sat  Colonel  Edward  Hand,  just  arrived  from  Fort 
Pitt,  now  Pittsburg,  in  western  Pennsylvania.  Only 
thirty-two  years  old,  he  had  once  served  his  king  as 
a  surgeon,  but,  resigning  his  commission,  had  settled 
in  Pennsylvania  five  years  before  and  was  an  ardent 
patriot.  He  was  one  of  the  best  horsemen  in  the 
army  and  always  superb  in  appearance. 

The  other  guests  were  Captain  Adam  Vrooman,  of 
Schenectady,  New  York,  a  middle-aged,  well-knit 
man.  By  his  side  sat  his  stalwart  and  handsome  son 
Claes,  whose  sunburnt  face  and  appearance  of  being 


1 6     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

always  alert  told  of  his  long  service  in  the  forest. 
He,  like  his  father,  carried  a  cross  in  his  heart,  for 
his  sister  was  captive  among  the  Seneca  Indians. 
Yet  his  was  a  double  burden,  for  his  wife,  the  bride 
of  a  fortnight,  was  a  captive  also,  she  with  his  sister 
having  been  seized,  while  on  a  visit  to  Cherry  Valley 
the  year  before,  by  the  savages.  Father  and  son 
had  come  from  Schenectady  and  had  gone  in  the 
service,  as  riflemen,  to  Fort  Pitt,  in  Pennsylvania, 
hoping  to  join  the  expedition  organized  under  Colonel 
Broadhead.  With  better  prospects  of  rescuing  sister 
and  wife,  they  had  returned  with  Colonel  Hand. 

Young  Vrooman  was  happy  in  his  appointment  as 
guide  to  General  John  Sullivan's  "  Western  Expedi 
tion  into  the  Seneca  Country,"  for  the  long-talked-of 
project  of  destroying  the  Iroquois  power  was  now  an 
official  fact.  Vrooman  had  lived  in  hopes  of  rescue, 
for  he  had  heard  that  instead  of  a  tomahawk  sinking 
into  their  skulls,  his  sister  had  been  .adopted  by  the 
Tuscaroras  of  Lake  Cayuga,  and  that  his  wife  was 
living  in  the  same  region  of  lakes  and  waterfalls. 

There  were  present,  also,  a  gentleman,  John  Harby, 
and  his  daughter  Henrietta,  formerly  living  at  Harris 
Ferry, — now  Harrisburg, — but,  since  the  outbreak  of 
the  war,  at  Barren  Hill,  not  far  from  Valley  Forge. 
This  was  not  her  first  visit  to  the  city  founded  by  Penn. 
Formerly  a  pupil  in  the  Moravian  school  at  Bethle 
hem,  and  called  home  by  the  outbreak  of  war,  she 
was  now  going  back  there  to  help  the  surgeons  who 


AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY  17 

cared  for,  and  the  Moravian  "nuns"  who  tended,  the 
wounded.  Her  happy  disposition  and  continuous 
brightness  made  her  a  favorite  in  the  Eyre  home. 

The  ninth  person  at  the  table  was  a  sad-faced 
young  widow  lady,  one  of  nearly  four  hundred  made 
at  Wyoming  on  June  30,  1778,  by  the  redskins  and 
redcoats.  She  was  a  cousin  of  Mrs.  Eyre,  who  since 
the  slaughter  of  her  husband,  a  boat-builder  on  the 
Susquehanna  and  previously  foreman  in  Colonel 
Eyre's  shipyard,  had  found  a  home  in  his  family. 
He,  the  victim,  was  one  of  the  fourteen  men  com 
pelled  to  kneel  in  a  circle  on  the  ground,  while  the 
Seneca  Queen  Esther,  whose  castle  was  at  Tioga 
Point,  infuriated  because  of  the  death  of  her  son, 
brained  one  after  the  other  with  a  tomahawk,  until 
the  last  one  of  the  fourteen  was  a  bloody  corpse. 
The  Philadelphia  home  was  like  a  haven  of  peace 
ful  comfort,  after  her  weeks  of  wandering  and  semi- 
starvation  in  the  woods. 

Mrs.  Eyre  took  her  place  at  the  head  of  the  table, 
and  was  soon  serving  the  fragrant  tea,  with  "  trim 
mings  "  to  suit  each  taste,  for  the  first  patriot  taboo 
ing  of  the  leaf  of  China  in  1 774  was  a  thing  of  the 
past.  Through  St.  Eustatius,  in  the  Dutch  West 
Indies,  with  which  port  Colonel  Eyre  was  in  frequent 
communication,  the  Amoy  tea,  though  a  luxury  some 
what  more  expensive  than  formerly,  was  not  extra 
hazardous  in  obtaining.  The  swift  ships  built  by  the 
Eyres  ran  with  comparative  ease  the  blockade  of  the 


1 8     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

heavy  British  frigates  off  the  capes  of  the  Delaware 
and  the  Chesapeake. 

As  ever,  the  fragrant  beverage  lubricated  the 
tongue,  and  conversation  flowed  easily. 

"  I  do  not  see  that  the  ladies  have  changed  since 
I  last  saw  your  household,  Colonel  Eyre,  except  that 
your  daughter  is  taller  and  more  womanly,  but  as  to 
yourself,  in  your  military  uniform,  a  stranger  would 
hardly  recognize  the  Friend  in  drab  of  ten  years  ago. 
Did  you  know  your  own  husband,  Mrs.  Eyre,  when 
he  put  on  soldier  clothes  ? "  asked  Colonel  Hand  of 
the  hostess. 

"  Oh,  yes ;  it  was  hardly  a  surprise,  for  I  knew  it 
would  come.  From  the  very  first,  although  most  of 
the  city  Friends  held  to  the  king's  side,  those  in  the 
country  all  through  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey 
favored  the  cause  of  liberty.  Then,  my  husband  is 
'  Quaker,'  as  the  world  calls  us,  with  only  a  half  a 
generation  of  Friends'  doctrines  and  light  behind 
him,  for  my  father-in-law  belonged,  when  at  home 
across  sea,  to  the  Church  of  England.  He  entered 
the  congregation  of  Friends  when  he  married  his 
sweetheart  in  Burlington." 

"  Oh,  then  it  was  Cupid,  rather  than  original  con 
victions,  that  caused  the  Churchman  to  become 
'  Quaker ' ;  for,  as  you  say,  the  world  prefers  to  use 
the  term,  and  I  am  very  much  of  the  world.  What 
a  fascinating  Diana,  or  shall  I  say  Minerva,  your 
sweetheart  must  have  been,"  and  the  gallant  Irish- 


AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY  1 9 

man,  who  was  fond  of  classical  allusions,  glanced 
roguishly  at  Colonel  Eyre. 

"  Yes,  Colonel ;  and  my  husband,  when  he  took 
that  trip  to  Fort  Pitt  before  his  marriage,  was  so 
long  away  from  the  Meeting-house,  and  so  much 
with  the  officers  of  the  garrison,  that  I  think  he 
became  much  more  than  half  a  soldier  even  then. 
Is  it  not  so,  husband  ?  " 

"  Well,  I  confess  it,  that  after  the  first  pressure  of 
work,  having  plenty  of  leisure  at  times,  I  studied  the 
handling  of  artillery." 

Colonel  Eyre  had,  in  1760,  travelled  to  "the  far 
West,"  through  Pennsylvania,  taking  with  him  ship 
carpenters  and  blacksmiths  engaged  by  his  future 
father-in-law.  He  went  to  Fort  Pitt,  after  George 
Washington  had  done  his  pioneer  work  in  that  direc 
tion,  to  build  the  boats  which  should  take  King 
George's  soldiers  down  the  Ohio  River  and  there 
assert  his  Majesty's  rights. 

"  I  judge,  by  the  way  your  eye  brightens,  that 
you  rather  enjoyed  it,"  remarked  Captain  Vrooman. 

"  True,  I  acknowledge  it ;  even  on  First  Day,  after 
the  chaplain  was  through  his  sermon,  I  improved 
time  getting  the  theory,  while  on  other  days,  as  I 
had  opportunity,  I  practised  the  real  thing  with  the 
drill  squad." 

"  Yes,"  joined  in  Mr.  Harby  ;  "  I  remember  when 
you  spent  the  night  with  me  at  my  house  at  Harris 
Ferry,  how  you  told  me  you  had  not  only  learned  to 


2O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

make  and  equip  gun  carriages  but  could  load,  sight, 
and  fire  siege  guns,  and  even  handle  a  battery  in  the 
field." 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  Colonel  Eyre  ;  "  I  drilled  regularly 
with  the  field  gun  force  too.  Indeed,  I  may  say  that 
Fort  Pitt  was  my  military  college  in  which  I  trained 
for  Princeton  and  Brandywine.  As  I  could  not  go 
to  Flanders  or  Woolwich,  I  learned  at  home." 

"  Good,"  said  Colonel  Hand  ;  "  but  I  regret  that  you 
didn't  train  further  by  making  at  least  one  trip  with 
field  guns  into  the  wilderness.  If  you  could  be  trans 
ferred  from  the  Pennsylvania  to  the  Continental  line, 
I  should  persistently  urge  your  appointment  for  the 
expedition  into  the  Seneca  country,  which  his  Excel 
lency  General  Washington  has  planned.  Personally, 
I  would  rather  have  you  than  Colonel  Thomas  Proc 
tor,  who  is  more  likely  to  be  chosen.  By  the  way, 
where  is  he  now  with  his  regiment  ? " 

"  Most  of  his  men  are  garrisoning  the  forts  on  the 
Delaware,  especially  at  Billingsport  and  Fort  Mifflin. 
I  expect  I  shall  be  ordered  with  my  companies  to 
relieve  him.  Some  of  my  men  are  at  Easton  now, 
but  return  as  soon  as  General  Sullivan  starts  west 
ward.  I  confess  I  should  like  to  try  the  hazard  of 
battle  with  Brant  and  Butler  in  that  beautiful  lake 
region  of  New  York,  of  which  I  have  heard  so 
much." 

"Would  to  God  it  might  be  so,  cousin,"  broke  in 
the  Wyoming  widow,  who  was  at  times  assisting 


AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY  21 

the  maid  and  Margaret  in  the  courtesies  of  the 
supper.  Then,  blushing  at  her  apparent  haste  and 
presumption,  she  added,  with  a  look  at  Mrs.  Eyre,  in 
which  gratitude  and  even  sympathy  were  blended, 
"  Pardon  me,  I  am  glad  enough  that  duty  does  not 
call  my  friend  into  those  dark  swamps  and  gloomy 
woods  of  New  York,  to  fight  enemies  whose 
method  of  warfare  seems  to  be  first  ambuscade 
and  then  massacre.  Oh,  mercy  !  what's  that  ?  "  she 
exclaimed. 

All  arose  and  listened  to  the  alarming  cries  which 
seemed  to  issue  from  the  stable,  some  distance  in  the 
rear  of  the  house. 

"Help!  help!  The  British!  Injuns!  Tories! 
Murder-r-r-r  !  ' 

They  rushed  out  to  see  what  was  the  matter,  when 
a  sight  greeted  their  eyes  which,  as  soon  as  they 
understood  the  situation,  called  for  roars  of  laughter. 
There  was  a  little  door  within  the  big  stable  door, 
which  a  man  could  unlock  and  get  in  or  out,  without 
opening  the  big  double-leaved  door  that  opened  for 
carriage  and  horses.  Wedged  into  this  space  of  less 
than  two  feet  square  were  two  fellows,  one  fat  and 
the  other  lean.  Only  their  heads  and  half  their 
bodies  were  out,  the  other  halves  of  their  physical 
economy,  including  legs,  being  inside  the  stable. 
Squeezed  tightly  together,  face  to  face,  and  a  black 
to  a  red  head,  they  were  puffing  and  blowing,  their 
faces  making  alternately  the  colors  of  their  hair. 


22     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

They  were  clamorous  for  help,  but  were  unable  to 
get  out.  One  was  Colonel  Eyre's  coachman  and  the 
other  his  hostler. 

Whether  to  saw  out  another  board  of  the  door,  or 
to  pull  them  out,  was  the  question.  If  the  latter, 
should  it  be  by  the  legs  or  by  the  shoulders  ?  One 
way  seemed  better  for  the  stout  man  and  the  other 
for  the  thin.  In  either  case,  coats,  spines,  or  shoul 
ders  must  suffer.  Suddenly,  as  the  rescuers,  willing 
but  uncertain  how  to  act,  hesitated,  the  door  was 
swung  open  and  "  Jeremiah  Grumps,"  as  the  Colonel 
had  nicknamed  him,  a  middle-aged  and  half-hearted 
patriot,  a  shoemaker,  who  was  always  predicting  the 
success  of  the  enemy,  appeared  in  view.  Seizing  the 
hostler's  legs  he  pulled  lustily  inward,  young  Vrooman 
reinforcing  him  to  extricate  the  coachman.  The 
others  outside  pushed.  After  about  as  much  traction 
and  hauling  as  would  suffice  to  get  a  camel  through 
"  the  needle's  eye "  of  an  oriental  caravansary,  the 
rescue  was  accomplished.  The  two  men,  now  no 
longer  twins,  with  spines  slightly  scraped,  and  the 
hostler  with  cheek  barked,  stood  apart  and  perpendicu 
lar  again.  They  had  had  five  minutes  or  so  of  in 
voluntary  horizontal  balancing  by  their  ribs  on  an 
inch  width  of  deal  board,  and  were  now  glad  to 
assume  the  use  of  their  legs. 

The  fat  man,  suffering  most  from  both  loss  of 
wind  and  personal  dignity,  disappeared  to  refit.  So 
the  thin  hero,  the  hostler,  was  called  on  to  tell  the 


AN    INTERRUPTED    TEA-PARTY  23 

story,  for  "Jeremiah  Crumps"  had  quickly  made 
himself  invisible. 

It  seems  that  "  Pud  "  and  "  Spider,"  as  the  two 
men  of  the  stable,  though  chums,  called  each  other, 
had  been  discussing  war  matters  and  Continental 
money.  Discouraged  at  the  dark  state  of  affairs  on 
our  side,  in  this  gloomy  year  of  1779,  they  feared  lest 
the  British  might,  after  all,  win.  Indulging  in  the 
most  gloomy  reflections  and  wondering  whether  the 
Revolution  would  be  a  failure  and  the  country  be 
ruined,  a  third  friend,  "  Jeremiah  Crumps,"  the  dys 
peptic  shoemaker,  stepped  in  with  a  big  powder-horn 
in  his  hand  and  for  a  while  uttered  even  more  dismal 
prophecies.  There  was  a  little  portable  earthenware 
furnace,  on  which  glowed  a  few  lumps  of  charcoal, 
for  drying  out  the  stable.  Crumps  proceeded  to 
amuse  them,  from  time  to  time,  while  they  were  so 
dejected,  by  pulling  out  the  plug  from  the  powder- 
horn  and  throwing  a  pinch  of  powder  on  the  fire  to 
see  it  flash  up  merrily.  Now,  this  third  party,  despite 
his  dyspepsia,  was  a  wag  and  a  confirmed  player  of 
practical  jokes.  Nevertheless,  the  pair  did  not  sus 
pect  what  he  was  at. 

Increasing  in  doleful  predictions,  so  as  to  utterly 
outdo  the  others,  Crumps  finally  declared  that  they 
had  better,  then  and  there,  all  commit  suicide  by 
blowing  themselves  up.  Whereupon,  pulling  out  the 
plug  and  throwing  it  away,  he  cast  the  hornful  of 
rifle  powder,  as  they  supposed,  into  the  open  fire. 


24     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

In  an  instant  the  two  terrified  patriots  rushed  to  save 
their  lives  by  getting  out  of  the  stable.  The  gate 
being  locked,  they  wasted  no  time  in  trying  to  open  it, 
but  both  seeing  that  the  small  square  entrance,  or 
manhole,  usually  called  "the  needle's  eye,"  had  been 
left  open  by  Crumps,  they  attempted  simultaneously 
to  leap  through.  There  and  then,  the  brace  got  hope 
lessly  jammed  together.  The  result  was  that  they 
stuck  fast  with  their  legs  inside  and  their  heads  and 
half  their  bodies  outside.  While  the  fat  man  yelled 
murder  and  cried  for  help,  the  thin  hostler,  being  less 
squeezed,  thought  that  silence  was  golden. 

Yet,  after  all,  there  was  no  explosion.  The  jolly 
joker,  after  nearly  splitting  himself  with  laughing,  had 
found  the  key,  unlocked  and  swung  the  door  open. 
After  assisting  to  get  his  friends  on  their  feet  again, 
he  disappeared,  as  we  have  seen.  The  powder-horn 
had  had  real  powder  only  toward  the  tapering  end, 
which  was  plugged  up  inside.  The  chief  contents 
were  several  pounds  of  black  sand.  The  wrath  of 
the  two  victims  at  the  roughness  of  the  joke  was  tem 
pered  by  their  gratitude  at  being  rescued. 


CHAPTER  II 

BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE 

AFTER  the  funny  episode,  which  interrupted  the 
flow  of  conversation  but  for  a  few  minutes,  the 
party  took  their  places  again  at  the  table  under 
the  apple  trees,  and  a  fresh  relay  of  hot  tea  set  the 
stream  of  talk  flowing  again.  All  agreed  that  the 
Wyoming  widow,  to  whom  the  mystery  of  ambus 
cades  was  not  fully  solved,  should  have  it  explained 
just  how  and  why  neither  the  cunning  nor  the 
castles  of  the  Iroquois  would  avail  against  an 
expedition  planned  by  Washington  and  led  by 
Sullivan. 

"  We  do  not  want  another  Braddock's  defeat,  to  say 
nothing  of  Wyoming,"  said  Mrs.  Eyre  to  her  kins 
woman  ;  "  and  I  do  not  think  there  will  be  either  am 
bush  or  massacre,  if  there  be  riflemen  enough  "  —  and 
here  she  handed  to  Vrooman,  senior,  with  smiling  ap 
proval,  his  third  cup  of  fragrant  Amoy  tea. 

"  No,  wife,  and  cousin,  too  ;  nor  shall  we  have  any, 
if  Colonel  Hand  with  his  light  troops  leads  the  ad 
vance.  If  I  took  lessons  in  handling  cannon  at  Pitts- 

25 


26     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

burg,  he  learned  to  fight  Indians  in  that  same  region. 
He  knows  just  how  the  redmen  think  and  act,  and 
he  knows  well  the  superior  skill  and  valor  of  the  rifle 
men.  How  delightful,  too,  Colonel  Hand,  it  must 
have  been  to  mingle  among  your  warm-hearted  fel 
low  Irishmen  in  western  Pennsylvania.  For  real 
comradeship  give  me  a  jolly  man  from  the  Emerald 
Isle." 

"Thank  you,  Colonel  Eyre,"  said  Hand,  blushing. 
"  We  Irishmen  are,  it  is  certain,  treated  better  here 
than  in  the  old  country  by  king  and  Parliament.  We 
cannot  help  supporting  Congress.  But,  concerning 
the  Indians,  in  these  many  months  of  service  I  not 
only  saw  how  the  redman  hides  in  ambush,  sneaking 
up  to  kill  the  men  first,  and  then  tomahawk  the  family 
and  set  the  home  on  fire,  leaving  a  blazing  ruin  where 
before  was  peace  and  comfort,  but  I  know  how  the 
red  demons  act  when  obliged  to  stand  up  and  fight 
when  pursued.  My  experience  in  western  Pennsyl 
vania  gave  me  some  knowledge  which  I  have  gladly 
placed  at  the  disposition  of  General  Washington, 
himself  once  a  frontiersman  of  skill,  and  I  hope  to  be 
appointed  to  lead  a  brigade  of  light  infantry.  Yet 
I  wish  you  were  going,  with  your  guns,  for  the 
redmen  have  not  moral  courage  to  stand  against 
artillery." 

"  Moral  courage  ?  How  does  that  differ  from  the 
muscular  sort,  colonel  ? "  asked  Mrs.  Eyre. 

"  Well,  the    Indian   is  brave   enough    physically," 


BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE        2/ 

replied  Colonel  Hand.  "  It  is  astonishing  what  hun 
ger,  discomfort,  and  privations  he  can  bear,  and  what 
bodily  tortures  he  will  submit  to  for  the  sake  of  his 
religion,  or,  as  I  should  call  it,  superstition.  I  am  not 
certain,  however,  that  he  can  stand  getting  a  tooth 
drawn  any  better  than  we  white  men,  whom  he  jeers 
at,  because  we  do  not  bear  torture,  as  prisoners,  like 
savages.  Certain  it  is  that  he  has  not  the  mind  to 
look  into  the  cannon's  mouth.  He  cannot  face  a 
howitzer,  and  nothing  can  induce  him  to  keep  his 
ground  when  bombs  are  flying  round  or  balls  are  tear 
ing  the  trees  to  pieces.  I  hope  that  General  Washing 
ton  will  certainly  order  the  artillery  to  go  with  us.  I 
am  still  fresh  from  Wyoming  and  its  awful  scene  of 
blackness,  ashes,  and  skeletons.  Pardon  me,  madam, 
I  see  you  turn  pale,"  Colonel  Hand  interjected,  as  he 
saw  the  widow  lady's  change  of  countenance ;  "  but 
let  me  say  that  if  two  or  three  well-served  field  guns, 
or  coehorns,  with  Colonel  Eyre's  artillerists,  had  been 
there,  the  story  of  June  30,  1778,  might  have  been  dif 
ferent." 

"  Yes,"  said  Colonel  Eyre ;  "you  know  that  though 
Braddock  took  his  artillery  with  him,  it  was  of  no 
use,  when  no  enemy  was  in  sight,  for  he  let  them 
surround  him  and  make  themselves  invisible.  In 
deed,  I  saw  one  tree  on  Braddock's  field,  two 
and  a  half  feet  thick,  cut  in  halves  by  cannon 
balls;  but  firing  at  the  invisible  did  no  good.  I  do 
not  suppose  anything  could  have  saved  his  men 


28     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

when  the  general  was  determined  to  fight  in  solid 
platoons,  as  if  he  and  they  were  on  the  flat  fields 
of  Flanders." 

"  By  the  way,"  said  Mr.  Vrooman  ;  "  that  disaster 
in  Virginia  had  a  terrible  effect,  even  up  in  northern 
New  York,  in  emboldening  the  savages.  I  hope,  if 
our  army  goes  into  the  Seneca  country,  they  will  not 
be  '  Braddocked.'  There  are  many  dangerous  places 
through  which  an  army  must  defile  in  a  long, 
narrow  line,  and  where  even  a  small  band  of  red 
skins  could  ambuscade  whole  regiments  or  stampede 
the  pack-horses  and  throw  everything  in  confu 
sion,  making  short  work  even  of  the  Continental 
veterans." 

"Yes,"  replied  Colonel  Hand.  "With  men  drilled 
only  in  ordinary  European  tactics,  there  is  grave 
danger  in  a  march  of  three  hundred  miles  through 
woods,  in  which  are  only  Indian  trails.  But  give  me 
a  few  companies  of  'Virginia  riflemen,'  —  who  come 
chiefly  from  Pennsylvania,"  said  he,  laughing,  "  such 
as  Colonel  Morgan  has  trained  and  General  Wash 
ington  thinks  so  much  of ;  or,  still  better,  those 
Pennsylvanians,  Germans,  Irishmen,  or  sons  of  Swiss 
chamois-hunters  whom  I  have  had  under  my  com 
mand,  and  I'll  guarantee  immunity  from  a  disastrous 
ambuscade.  These  hardy  fellows  have  grown  up  in 
the  forests.  Having  lived  all  their  lives  among  the 
Indians,  they  have  learned  their  tricks  of  wood-craft 
and  added  thereto  the  superior  intelligence  of  the 


BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE        2Q 

white  man.  Give  us  enough  of  these,  and  instead  of 
being  '  Braddocked,'  we  shall  drive  the  Iroquois  to 
Niagara  and  into  Canada." 

"  Was  General  Braddock  really  ambuscaded,  Colo 
nel  Hand  ? "  asked  Vrooman,  senior,  with  a  look  of 
doubt  and  incredulity. 

"  No,  on  my  reputation,  no.  The  French  and  the 
redskins  met  the  king's  troops  face  to  face  in  the 
comparatively  open  forest,  and  the  one  side  was  as 
much  surprised  as  the  other.  But,  while  the  British 
sat  down,  with  napkins  on,  to  a  well-cooked  dinner, 
to  eat  leisurely  first  and  then  go  to  battle,  in  the 
correct  style  of  the  Low  Countries,  the  Indians  simply 
scattered  themselves  in  cover,  and  enjoyed  an  after 
noon  of  target  practice.  Even  when  the  army  had 
formed,  the  men  and  their  officers,  knowing  how  to 
fight  only  in  platoons  according  to  the  European 
method,  were  quickly  slaughtered.  The  soldiers  were 
not  used  to  firing  into  bushes,  or  aiming  at  invisible 
foes.  A  Frenchman  I  met  and  talked  to  told  me 
that  he  went  over  the  field  after  the  battle  and  saw 
that  most  of  the  dead  British  officers  had  napkins 
pinned  on  their  breasts.  The  white  linen  had  in 
each  case  made  a  superb  target  for  the  Indians,  and 
most  of  the  napkins  had  bullet  holes  in  them.  It 
was  the  redskins  that  did  the  bloody  work,  however, 
for  the  Canadians  had  run  away." 

"  Well,  colonel,  you  will  not  take  many  city  cooks 
into  the  New  York  wilderness,  will  you  ?  Napkins 


3O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

and  table  luxuries  will  be  left  at  home  ? "  queried 
Mrs.  Eyre. 

"  No,  we  expect  neither  to  fall  into  ambush,  nor 
walk  into  a  trap  with  our  eyes  open,  and  then  call  it 
an  'ambuscade.' " 

"  By  the  way,  Colonel  Hand,"  asked  Mr.  Harby, 
"did  you  ever  visit  the  actual  place  of  Braddock's 
defeat?" 

"  Yes,  more  than  once ;  but  it  is  now,  after  twenty 
years  or  more,  so  overgrown  that,  except  for  an 
occasional  bone  washed  out  here  and  there,  or  some 
mark  on  the  trees  or  branches,  which  only  a  wood 
man's  eye  can  detect,  there  are  no  signs  of  that 
awful  day,  which  would  have  been  utterly  lost  except 
for  Washington.  Nature  has  kindly  covered  up  the 
marks  of  slaughter." 

"Ah,  that  reminds  me,"  said  the  host;  "I  saw 
Braddock's  field  when  all  the  bones  of  his  men  were 
lying  white  on  the  soil.  With  some  comrades  in 
Fort  Pitt,  I  went  out  to  see  that  little  amphitheatre 
which  the  Indians  had  used  as  a  shooting  gallery.  I 
believe  that  the  redskins  surprised  themselves  fully 
as  much  as  they  did  the  redcoats,  at  the  amazing 
ease  of  their  victory.  It  was  simply  a  case  of  a 
martinet  general  setting  up  a  target  for  an  enemy  he 
could  not  understand.  All  around  were  old  logs  and 
trees  and  the  underbrush  in  the  forest,  undisturbed 
for  a  thousand  years.  On  the  hill  slope  the  savages 
hid  themselves  and  simply  blazed  away.  If  the 


BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE        31 

Virginians  lay  down  behind  rocks  or  stood  behind 
trees  to  circumvent  the  Indians,  the  demoralized 
British  infantry  fired  into  their  backs.  This  was 
simply  because  they  had  something  to  see  and  to 
fire  at. 

"  Down  in  the  low-lying  portion,  in  a  parallelogram 
only  half  a  mile  long  and  about  one  hundred  yards 
wide,  I  saw  the  white  bones  of  enough  victims  to 
remind  me  of  Ezekiel's  vision.  They  lay  thick  as 
leaves,  one  over  the  other.  It  was  five  years  after 
the  sad  event  that  I  looked  upon  the  scene.  It  only 
shows  how  hard  it  is  for  our  British  friends  to  learn 
from  Americans.  Why,  King  George  himself,  young 
and  headstrong,  given  to  governing  too  much,  seems 
to  be  no  better  than  Braddock  in  refusing  to  learn 
from  those  who  could  teach  him  better." 

"Well,  I  feel  sure,"  continued  Colonel  Hand, 
"that  with  some  light  guns  and  howitzers,  and  our 
skilful  axemen,  we  can  chop  our  way  into  the 
Indian  country,  demoralize  the  Indians,  and  blow 
to  pieces  their  strongest  castles.  Even  though  they 
have  the  Tories  of  Canada,  and  the  Butlers  and 
Johnsons  from  the  Mohawk  Valley  to  help  them 
build  entrenchments,  we  can  do  it.  Give  us  a  few 
companies  of  riflemen,  scouts,  and  skirmishers,  and 
some  guides  like  our  young  friend  Vrooman  here, 
and  I  can  assure  General  Washington  that  there  will 
be  no  '  Braddock's  field  '  along  our  route." 

"Thank  you,  colonel,  and  God  grant  us  the  op- 


32     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

portunity,"  said  young  Vrooman.  "We  young  men 
of  the  Mohawk  Valley  are  all  ready  to  march.  While 
you  and  Pennsylvania  remember  Wyoming,  we  have 
Cherry  Valley  and  Springfield  to  avenge.  The  plots 
are  all  hatched,  and  the  forays  all  planned  at  Kane- 
dasaga,1  at  the  head  of  Seneca  Lake.  In  one  of  my 
trips,  I  went  there  with  Domine  Kirkland  and  his 
Oneida  friends.  Furthermore,  we'll  be  doing  the 
patriot  cause  a  good  service  to  destroy  all  the  corn 
fields.  I  have  been  out  in  the  region  of  those  pretty 
lakes  in  western  New  York,  where  the  Indians  have 
raised  grain  and  vegetables  for  a  good  many  years 
past.  On  my  last  scout,  just  before  the  Oriskany 
campaign,  I  found  hundreds  of  braves  girdling  and 
deadening  the  trees  in  scores  of  patches  in  the  for 
est,  for  new  maize  fields,  and  thousands  of  squaws 
planting  the  seed,  or  at  work  with  the  hoe.  I  hear 
that  both  this  year  and  last  the  Tories  have  been  by 
the  score  among  the  Indians,  helping  them  in  their 
farming  and  building  operations.  Along  the  river 
bottoms  and  in  the  open  inter-lake  country  there 
must  be  many  tens  of  thousands  of  fresh  acres  of 
corn  planted.  Many  of  the  fields  are  fenced,  and 
live  stock,  cattle,  hogs,  chickens,  and  horses  are  com 
mon.  Hundreds  of  new  bark  houses  have  been 
built  to  store  the  crops,  and  it  is  even  proposed  to 
feed  a  large  part  of  the  British  army, — not  only 
those  that  come  down  from  Canada,  but  those  in 

1  Geneva,  New  York. 


BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE       33 

New  York  and  along  the  coast.  Light  boats  and 
canoes  can  be  floated  down  the  Susquehanna  and 
the  Delaware,  so  that  the  main  forces  can  thus  be 
provisioned." 

"  Indeed ! "  said  Colonel  Hand,  with  true  Irish 
impetuosity,  bringing  his  fist  down  on  the  table  so 
violently  as  to  rattle  the  gilt-rimmed  china  cups  and 
saucers,  and  upset  a  pile  of  caraway-seed  cakes. 
The  ladies  looked  at  him  almost  with  alarm,  as  he 
blurted  out,  "  An  idea  strikes  me." 

"  As  hard  as  you  hit  the  table  ? "  queried  Colonel 
Eyre,  merrily. 

"  Well,"  said  the  light  infantry  commander,  laugh 
ing,  "  I  can  see  now  why  delay  to  General  Sullivan's 
expedition  will  do  no  harm.  Even  if  beef,  boats,  and 
flour  are  slow  in  coming,  and  we  start  late  in  the 
season,  we  shall  be  in  the  nick  of  time,  for  then  the 
crops  will  be  ripe  and  their  destruction  will  be  surer 
and  more  disastrous  to  our  enemies." 

"  I  fear  from  the  opposition  of  the  Quakers,  who 
think  the  poor  Indians  are  more  sinned  against  than 
sinning,  and  from  the  usual  dilatoriness  of  the 
Board  of  War,  that  there  will  be  tardiness,"  said 
Colonel  Eyre.  "  Even  if  after  the  supplies  are 
delivered  they  are  found  to  be  worth  using,  then 
the  contractors  in  east  Pennsylvania  are  more 
honest  men  than  their  fellows  in  New  York  or 
Massachusetts." 

"  Do  you  understand,  colonel,  that  the  expedition 


34     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

is  to  start  from  Pennsylvania  ? "  asked  Adam  Vroo- 
man. 

"  Well,  yes ;  the  main  body  will,  in  all  probability, 
move  from  Easton,  while  the  New  York  troops  set  out 
from  Schenectady.  But  that  is  a  matter  to  be  set 
tled  at  the  council  board  with  the  commander  when 
we  meet  him  next  week  at  Middlebrook,  in  New 
Jersey,  where  he  is  now." 

By  this  time  the  table  began  to  look  very  empty. 
The  third  cup  of  tea  had  been  enjoyed  by  nearly  every 
one,  and  the  party  seemed  ready  to  adjourn.  The 
only  ones  who  had  not  spoken  were  the  demure 
maidens,  Margaret  Eyre  and  Henrietta  Harby.  The 
former,  looking  at  young  Vrooman,  seemed  to  wish  to 
speak. 

"  What  is  it,  daughter  ? " 

"  Well,  father,  you  know  how  I  love  rare  flowers, 
and  Mr.  Bartram,  our  botanical  friend,  tells  me  there 
is  a  wonderful  little  pink  primrose,  quite  unlike  any 
thing  in  our  region,  that  grows  only  in  the  cool  gorges 
of  that  wonderful  land  of  lakes,  in  which  Mr.  Vroo 
man  has  travelled  with  Domine  Kirkland,  and  espe 
cially  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Cayuga.  I  wonder  if  he 
would  get  one  of  the  plants,  for  it  is  too  late  for  the 
blooms,  and  press  it  for  me.  Here  is  a  picture  of  the 
leaf,  flower,  stalk;  and  root,  with  a  sketch  of  its  sur 
roundings.  I  should  prize  it  more  than  edelweiss,  of 
which  the  Swiss  men  in  Colonel  Hubley's  Pennsyl 
vania  regiment  talk." 


BY  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  DELAWARE        35 

"  I  will,  fair  lady ;  you  can  count  on  me,"  said 
young  Vrooman. 

"  Thank  you,  and  may  you  find  and  bring  back 
your  wife  and  sister  too." 

"  God  grant  it !  "  The  words  and  prayer  sounded 
like  a  chorus  from  a  sextette  of  voices. 


CHAPTER   III 

THE    FRONTIERSMEN    AT   THE    CAPITAL 

THE  gentlemen  rose  and  walked  down  through 
the  garden  into  the  shipyard,  where  were  stored 
boxes  of  "hardware,"  or  cannon,  for  which  carriages 
were  then  being  built,  the  sheds  seeming  more  like 
wheelwrights'  shops  than  a  ship-builder's  work  place. 
The  three  Eyre  brothers,  Emmanuel,  Jabez,  and 
George,  had  built  many  gallant  craft  in  time  of 
peace,  with  such  names  as  the  Truelove,  the  Three 
Brothers,  etc.  The  Bull  Dog  was  a  specimen  name 
of  the  war-ships  launched  for  the  Congress.  The 
party  took  bateaux,  and  rowed  over  to  pay  a  short 
visit  to  the  Continental  brig  Andrea  Doria  which  then 
lay  out  on  the  bosom  of  the  stream  at  anchor. 

Colonel  Eyre  was  proud  of  this  craft,  for  he  had 
seen  it  built.  John  Adams  had  named  it  after  the 
famous  Italian  admiral,  whose  name  is  linked  with 
the  story  of  Italian  liberties.  Having  conquered  a 
city,  Andrea  Doria  gave  the  inhabitants  their  choice 
of  government.  On  their  choosing  a  republic,  he 
helped  maintain  for  them  this  form  of  order.  Colonel 

36 


THE    FRONTIERSMEN    AT    THE    CAPITAL  37 

Eyre  felt  a  peculiarly  patriotic,  as  well  as  a  personal, 
interest  in  this  ship,  because  it  was  the  first  war  ves 
sel  of  the  United  States  carrying  the  American  flag 
that  ever  gave  and  received  a  salute  from  a  foreign 
magistrate. 

On  the  i6th  of  November,  1776,  under  command 
of  Captain  Patterson,  the  Andrea  Doria  sailed  into 
the  harbor  of  St.  Eustatius  with  its  then  unstarred 
flag  of  thirteen  stripes  flying  apeak.  Captain  Ra- 
vene,  in  command  of  Fort  Orange,  by  order  of  the 
governor  of  the  island,  Johannes  de  Graeff,  fired, 
with  his  Dutch  artillery,  in  honor  of  "  the  flag  of  the 
Continental  Congress,"  a  salute  of  eleven  guns. 

Colonel  Eyre  now  told  the  story  of  the  salute,  how 
given  and  returned,  and  of  the  dinner  tendered  by 
Governor  de  Graeff  to  the  officers  of  the  Andrea 
Doria,  and  enjoyed  by  them,  and  how  they  presented, 
and  he  read,  the  document  of  July  4,  1776. 

The  ladies  were  still  chatting  in  the  parlor,  as  the 
party  were  returning  from  the  ship  to  the  house,  the 
walls  of  which  were  hung  with  prints  representing 
scenes  in  England.  These  were  the  market  road  or 
cross  in  the  town  of  Worksop ;  the  ruins  of  Newark 
Castle,  where  Colonel  Gervaise  Eyre,  ancestor  of 
Colonel  Eyre,  had  served  King  Charles  against 
the  Parliament  troopers,  often  gallantly  leading  his 
own  cavalrymen  against  Cromwell's  Ironsides;  and 
the  little  parish  church  at  Rampton,  where  the  Eyres 
of  several  generations  lie  buried.  Over  the  mantel- 


38     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

piece  was  draped  the  original  American  flag  of 
thirteen  stripes,  red  and  white,  without  stars. 

"Well,  Colonel  Hand,"  said  Mrs.  Eyre,  as  he 
stepped  across  the  threshold,  "  did  you  see  the  ship 
that  drew  forth  the  first  salute  ever  fired  in  honor  of 
the  American  flag  ?  " 

"Yes,  thank  you;  and  the  colonel,  your  husband, 
tells  me  you  have  the  identical  bunting  in  your 
house." 

"True,  sir;  here  it  is,"  and  she  pointed  to  the  as 
yet  starless  flag  gracefully  fastened  over  the  mantel 
piece.  "  This  drew  the  thunders  of  Fort  Orange  in 
the  West  Indies.  Captain  Patterson  himself  gave  it 
to  me  as  a  souvenir  of  his  voyage  and  of  the  first 
foreign  salute  to  the  flag  of  the  Continental  Congress 
and  of  our  country." 

"  Good ;  but  it  seems  to  me  the  Eyres  possess  a 
monopoly  of  famous  flags.  The  colonel  tells  me  that 
Mrs.  Betsey  Ross,  now  Mrs.  Claypole,  who  made  the 
first  flag  with  stars  in  it,  has  married  an  artilleryman 
once  in  his  regiment." 

"  True,  sir.  The  lady  is  fair  and  young,  and  we 
do  not  wonder  she  has  taken  a  third  husband  to  her 
self.  Her  second  was  prisoner  in  the  old  Mill  prison 
near  Plymouth  in  England.  He  sent  his  dying  mes 
sages  to  his  wife  by  the  man,  also  an  American 
prisoner,  formerly  in  my  husband's  regiment,  and  he 
carried  them  to  her.  Evidently  he  was  a  diligent 
lover,  for  in  eight  months  they  were  married." 


THE  FRONTIERSMEN  AT  THE  CAPITAL      39 

"  How  about  the  proverb,  '  Don't  trust  a  pigeon  to 
carry  grain  '  ?  " 

"  But  he,  the  third,  carried  the  grain  and  won  a  nest 
too,"  laughed  Mrs.  Eyre;  "and  here  is  one  of  the  first, 
though  not  the  very  first,  flags  she  made,  which  she 
kept  many  months  as  a  pattern.  Mr.  Claypole  him 
self,  her  husband,  gave  it  to  Colonel  Eyre." 

Colonel  Hand  examined  it  and  then  looked  up  into 
the  matron's  eyes  with  mute  appeal.  There  was  a 
prayer  in  his  eyes,  but  no  word  was  spoken. 

"  Enough,  Colonel  Hand ;  it  is  yours.  Carry  it  in 
the  forefront  of  General  Sullivan's  army.  Bear  it 
to  the  point  farthest  westward  ever  to  be  reached  by 
the  regular  Continental  soldiers,  and  then  return  it 
to  me,  —  if  God  will."  Mrs.  Eyre  looked  upward, 
bowed,  courtesied,  and  then  handed  the  silken  symbol 
to  the  colonel  of  the  light-armed  troops  who  were  to 
be  ever  in  the  van  of  Sullivan's  avengers  of  Wyoming. 

"  My  life  is  consecrated  to  my  adopted  country," 
said  the  gallant  Irishman.  "  I  promise  nothing.  Let 
deeds  tell." 

Yet  though  there  were  leaking  vessels,  and  a  blue 
coat  wet  on  the  breast  where  tears  had  fallen,  there 
was  silence,  while  Colonel  Hand  wrapped  up  the  flag 
and  put  it  inside  his  bosom. 

The  three  days  which  Colonel  Hand  and  the  Vroo- 
mans  had  to  spend  in  Philadelphia  before  joining  the 
army  at  Middlebrook,  New  Jersey,  were  spent  in  see 
ing  the  sights  of  what  was  then  the  capital  of  the 


4O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

United  States  and  the  largest  city  in  America.  The 
gentlemen  rose  from  their  beds  in  time  to  see  the 
Jersey  crows  fly  in  black  clouds  over  the  city  to 
their  daily  feeding  grounds  in  Pennsylvania.  In  the 
"  West  End,"  at  Sixth  Street,  toward  the  Schuylkill, 
apparently  on  the  edge  of  the  town,  or  at  least  the 
main  part  of  it,  stood  the  State  House,  while  Carpen 
ters'  Hall  was  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  eastward  and 
nearer  the  Delaware.  The  streets  between  the  rivers 
were  numbered  First,  Second,  Third,  etc.  Those 
between  Kensington  and  Southwark  were  named 
after  trees  such  as  Walnut,  Spruce,  Pine ;  or,  after 
bushes,  Mulberry,  Raspberry,  etc.  Colonel  Hand 
was  reminded  of  London  by  the  names  of  the  wards, 
Southwark,  Northern  Liberties,  Kensington,  etc. 
Vrooman,  senior,  noted  many  Dutch  names  of  fami 
lies  from  the  Netherlands  who  had  come  over  with 
William  Penn,  whose  mother  had  also  come  from 
Rotterdam. 

There  were  many  other  things  which  seemed  very 
fine  and  grand  to  those  who  had  spent  most  of  their 
lives  in  the  backwoods,  or  at  frontier  settlements. 
Indeed,  when  walking  along  Second  Street,  some 
of  the  houses  seemed  so  high  and  close  together  that 
at  one  point  Vrooman  the  younger  wished  to  walk  in 
the  middle  of  the  street. 

"  Where  are  you  going,  my  friend  ? "  asked  Colo 
nel  Eyre,  as  Vrooman  stepped  off  the  curb  and  on  to 
the  cobbles. 


THE    FRONTIERSMEN    AT    THE    CAPITAL  4! 

"  Why,  sir ;  I  am  afraid  these  high  houses  will  fall 
on  me.  They  really  seem  to  bend  and  frown  at  me." 

"  Ha,  ha  !  you  are  like  sailors  I  have  heard  of. 
Well,  you  will  get  more  light  and  air.  I  like  the  lat 
ter,  for  I  take  my  name  from  this  necessity  of 
existence." 

"  A  story,  Colonel  Eyre.  Tell  it,  or  I  shall  not 
order  my  pet  scout  and  rifleman  back  on  the  curb. 
How  did  you  get  your  family  name  ?  "  asked  Colonel 
Hand. 

"Well,  I'll  tell  it,  to  account  for  fighting  blood 
being  in  a  Quaker,  though  I  warn  you  it  is  legend, 
and  not  down  in  the  documents.  At  the  battle  of 
Hastings,  William  of  Normandy,  stunned  by  a  mis 
sile,  was  knocked  off  his  horse.  There  he  lay  in  his 
iron  harness,  and,  with  visor  down,  might  have  died 
for  want  of  air.  A  soldier  from  the  ranks,  stepping 
forward,  made  bold  to  raise  and  open  wide  the  hel 
met  of  the  Conqueror  and  to  ask  those  around  him 
to  stand  back.  Soon  the  chief  came  to,  declaring  at 
once  that,  by  the  splendor  of  God,  the  air  (eyre)  had 
revived  him.  When  able  to  stand,  he  asked  who  had 
thought  of  unlocking  his  visor.  The  soldier  being 
pointed  out,  the  mighty  William  summoned  him 
forth,  bade  him  kneel,  and  then  and  there,  with  the 
accolade,  dubbed  him  knight,  by  the  name  of  Air,  or 
Eyre,  as  they  spelled  it  then." 

"  Good !  Blood  will  tell.  Now  I  know  why 
you're  a  fighting  'Quaker.'  Come  Vrooman,  walk 


42     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

with  us.  I'll  guarantee  the  houses  will  not  fall 
down." 

So  on  they  sauntered,  first  on  Chestnut  and  then 
along  High  Street.  Among  other  friends  met,  whom 
Colonel  Eyre  saluted,  or  whom  he  stopped  to  give 
an  introduction  to  his  visitors,  were  Mr.  Robert 
Aiken,  the  publisher  of  the  Pennsylvania  Magazine, 
and  his  editor,  Mr.  Thomas  Paine,  a  brisk  gentle 
man  of  English  birth,  who  had  written  not  a  few 
tracts  which  fired  the  patriotism  of  both  civilians 
and  soldiers.  The  Continentals  had  cheered  their 
hearts  by  reading  these  by  the  light  of  the  camp- 
fires.  Even  in  the  gloom  of  Valley  Forge,  such 
stirring  appeals  to  patriotism  kindled  lamps  of 
hope. 

"When  will  you  empty  your  battery  of  quills  on 
the  enemy  again,  Mr.  Paine  ? "  asked  Colonel  Eyre. 

"  Oh,  I  am  out  of  ammunition  just  now,"  said 
Mr.  Paine,  laughing.  "  Haven't  a  quire  of  paper 
left.  As  soon  as  I  get  the  fifty  reams  we  are  wait 
ing  for,  from  St.  Eustatius,  the  country  will  hear 
from  me  ! " 

"Good,"  said  the  colonel;  "our  men  need  them. 
I  hope  General  Sullivan's  soldiers  will  take  a  good 
supply  in  their  knapsacks." 

"  Thank  you,  colonel ;  I  am  glad  to  find  my  work 
appreciated.  Good  day." 

Christ  Church,  on  Second  Street,  seemed  a  grand 
structure.  After  years  of  familiarity  with  narrow 


THE    FRONTIERSMEN    AT    THE    CAPITAL  43 

river  canoes  only,  the  crowded  wharves  and  sea 
going  ships  loomed  up  vast  and  mysterious.  Colo 
nel  Eyre  pointed  out  the  line  of  high  ground  along 
Front  Street,  in  which  Penn's  colonists  had  dug 
caves  and  lived  for  a  time  while  their  houses  were 
going  up.  He  showed  the  house  in  which  Catherine 
Montour,  the  Indian  queen,  whose  town  was  near 
Seneca  Lake,  had  stopped,  when  visiting  Philadel 
phia  at  the  age  of  ten  years,  with  Seneca  chiefs. 
Another  object  of  interest  was  the  house  in  which 
had  been  held  the  Indian  council,  at  which  the 
Iroquois  confronted  the  Delawares  in  a  dispute 
about  their  sale  of  lands,  called  them  squaws,  and 
so  angered  the  young  chief  Taughannock  that  he 
went  off  vowing  revenge,  and  kept  his  vow.  He 
showed  also  the  spot  on  Chestnut  Street  where  the 
mangled  and  scalped  corpses  of  those  slain  in  the 
Indian  massacres  had  been  brought  and  exposed 
as  an  object  lesson,  showing  what  the  British  allies 
could  and  would  do.  While  all  paused  to  admire 
the  State  House,  Colonel  Eyre  called  attention  to 
the  last  indictment  against  King  George,  in  the 
Declaration  of  July  4,  1776,  a  copy  of  which  was 
posted  on  Independence  Hall.  It  read  :  — 

"  He  [the  king  of  Great  Britain]  has  endeavored 
to  bring  on  the  inhabitants  of  our  frontiers  the 
merciless  Indian  savages,  whose  known  rule  of 
warfare  is  an  undistinguished  destruction  of  all 
ages,  sexes,  and  conditions." 


44     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

"  That  statement,  penned  nearly  three  years  ago, 
fully  justifies  the  Western  Expedition  against  the 
Indians,  which  General  Sullivan  is  to  lead,"  said 
Colonel  Hand ;  "  for  what  was  then  surmise  is  now 
multiplied  fact." 

"  Yes,  '  seeing  is  believing,  but  feeling  is  the 
naked  truth.'  The  orders  of  the  Congress  to  deso 
late  the  Indian  country  are  harsh,  but  they  are 
necessary.  I  have  seen  Wyoming.  That  is  enough 
for  me." 

As  for  the  ladies,  they  had  their  own  schemes  and 
pleasures.  John  Harby's  daughter,  who  went  shop 
ping  with  Miss  Eyre  down  the  Philadelphia  Cheap- 
side,  Second  Street,  thought  the  wonderful  things 
seen  in  the  shops  —  which  had  been  captured  by 
the  privateers  or  brought  over  by  way  of  the  Dutch 
West  Indies  from  Europe  —  were  gay  beyond  the 
glamour  of  fairy  tales.  The  first  strenuous  self- 
denial  of  the  early  years  of  the  war,  which  had 
compelled  the  patriotic  women  to  do  without  many 
familiar  luxuries,  was  now  over.  The  privateers 
which,  in  the  teeth  of  British  squadrons,  kept  the 
stars  and  stripes  afloat  on  the  ocean  and  gathered 
to  refit  and  load  with  supplies  at  St.  Eustatius, 
brought  in  fresh  invoices  almost  weekly.  One  prosy 
but  significant  fact  we  must  note,  and  that  is  this : 
Besides  what  the  ladies  thought  necessary  for  their 
comfort,  there  were  "grains"  and  "hardware," 
which  English  as  well  as  French  merchants  sold 


THE    FRONTIERSMEN    AT    THE    CAPITAL  45 

to  the  Dutch,  to  supply  Washington's  army,  in  ex 
change  for  tobacco,  American  produce,  or  Spanish 
silver,  said  "grains"  being  grains  of  gunpowder, 
and  "  hardware  "  being  cannon. 

This  chapter,  already  far  too  long,  would  be 
tediously  so,  were  I  here  to  tell  of  the  call  into  the 
upholstery  shop  on  Mulberry  Street  near  Second,  and 
the  chat  with  Mrs.  Ross-Claypole,  flag  maker  to  the 
Continental  Congress.  Philadelphia,  the  nation's 
capital,  was  a  wonderfully  gay  city,  for  the  British 
had  left  it  and  gone  to  New  York.  Meanwhile, 
Washington  held  his  Continentals  together,  and  waited 
for  the  time  to  come  when  the  French  alliance  should 
mean  efficient  cooperation. 


CHAPTER   IV 

RAAD    VOOR    DAAD 

"F^AAD  voor  daad"  ("Council  before  action"),  as 
1  \    the  Dutch  proverb  says.     Washington  was  ac 
customed  to  think  things  out  before  he  began   opera 
tions.     He  deliberated  and  then  struck  hard. 

Colonel  Hand,  with  Colonel  Eyre  and  his  aides, 
Captain  Adam  Vrooman,  and  his  son  Claes,  had  ridden 
from  Philadelphia  to  the  camp  at  Middlebrook,  New 
Jersey,  arriving  early  in  the  morning  of  the  third  day. 
After  slight  detention  by  the  pickets  and  outer  guard 
of  General  Anthony  Wayne's  brigade,  consisting  of  the 
First,  Second,  and  Third  Pennsylvania  regiments,  the 
visitors  were  escorted  to  Major  Alexander  Hamil 
ton's  office.  By  him  they  were  introduced  into  Wash 
ington's  presence,  who,  in  his  dignity,  greeted  them 
with  noticeable  warmth.  Colonel  Eyre  had  been  very 
active  in  the  Trenton  and  Princeton  campaign  of 
1776-77,  both  in  handling  the  boats  when  crossing 
the  Delaware  to  capture  Hessians  and  in  serving 
his  cannon  at  Princeton.  His  brother  George  had 
acted  as  his  aide,  and  he  knew  the  Eyres  well. 

"  I  am  very  happy  to  see  both  a  Continental  officer 
46 


THE  GENERAL  EXTENDED  HIS  HAND  COURTEOUSLY  TO  THE 
FATHER  AND  SON." 


RAAD    VOOR    DAAD  47 

and  one  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  who  have  been  over 
ground  once  so  familiar  to  me  in  Ohio  and  western 
Pennsylvania.  I  am  particularly  glad,  Colonel  Hand, 
that  you  have  taken  some  lessons  in  Indian  warfare, 
for  I  expect  to  give  you  further  opportunities  in  that 
direction.  Do  you  mind  travelling  northwestwardly  ?  " 
said  Washington. 

"  I  shall  be  only  too  happy,  your  Excellency,  to  go 
wheresoever  you  order,"  said  Colonel  Hand  ;  "  and  I 
wish  to  tell  you  how  well  I  have  been  assisted  by  my 
aides,  Captain  Adam  Vrooman  and  his  son  Claes,  of 
Schenectady.  The  young  man  knows  the  Seneca 
country  by  personal  examination.  He  has  been 
beyond  Cayuga  Lake  as  far  as  Kanedasaga,  the  big 
'castle,'  where  the  Wyoming  raid  was  planned.  I 
beg  to  commend  them  both  to  the  attention  of  your 
Excellency." 

The  general  extended  his  hand  courteously  to  the 
father  and  son,  and  bade  them  be  seated.  After  a 
few  exchanges  of  inquiry,  the  council  of  war  was 
called  for  ten  o'clock  next  morning.  The  visitors 
improved  their  time  by  visiting  the  camp  and  attend 
ing  the  inspection  of  some  regiments  by  Baron  Steu- 
ben.  It  was  with  a  feeling  of  awe  that  young 
Vrooman  first  looked  on  this  former  aide-de-camp  to 
the  mighty  king  of  Prussia,  Frederick  the  Great.  In 
glittering  uniform,  on  a  horse  richly  caparisoned  and 
with  unusually  large  holsters,  Baron  Steuben  seemed 
every  inch  a  soldier.  To  a  boy  whose  ideas  of 


48     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

European  warfare  had  been  gained  in  childhood  by 
poring  over  the  numerous  pictures  of  the  Dutch 
histories  of  the  Vaderland  and  the  States-General's 
version  of  the  family  Bible,  this  Prussian  recalled  the 
figures  of  Mars  and  the  imposing  Roman  soldiers 
under  Caesar.  Dismounting,  after  an  hour  or  two  of 
drill  and  tactics,  the  indefatigable  German  ordered 
knapsacks  unslung  and  their  contents  tumbled  into 
their  blankets,  to  see  that  everything  provided  by  law 
was  there  and  in  order.  Five  hours  were  spent  on 
three  regiments.  Then  Steuben  rode  back  to  his 
headquarters  at  the  house  of  the  Staats  family. 
"Nothing,"  as  the  baron  said  himself,  "is  too  little 
for  a  great  soldier." 

After  dinner  the  visitors  entered  the  soldiers'  log 
huts,  built  without  a  nail,  but  made  strong  with  plenty 
of  hickory  pins.  These  were  provided  with  a  double 
row  of  bunks  on  all  sides,  in  which  were  plenty  of 
straw  and  in  each,  neatly  folded  up,  a  Leyden  blanket. 
A  dozen  men  lived  in  each  hut.  The  broad  fire 
places  and  chimneys  were  made  of  bricks  and  splints 
of  wood  well  covered  with  clay.  A  rude  table  occu 
pied  most  of  the  centre  of  the  room,  on  one  half  of 
which  were  soldiers'  gear,  Mr.  Paine's  tracts,  smokers' 
material,  packs  of  cards,  novels,  copies  of  the  Phila 
delphia  periodicals,  occasionally  a  book,  and  once  in 
a  while  a  Bible  ;  and  on  the  other  half,  vessels  for 
eating  and  drinking,  of  wood,  pewter,  and  earthen 
ware.  Later  in  the  afternoon,  the  visitors  enjoyed 


RAAD    VOOR    DAAD  49 

the  sight  of  dress  parade  and  heard  the  evening 
gun. 

It  was  a  brilliant  company  of  handsome  men,  most 
of  them  still  young  or  in  the  prime  of  life,  that  gath 
ered  around  the  table  of  the  commander-in-chief  at 
Middlebrook,  to  take  council  concerning  the  proposed 
expedition  of  chastisement  against  "the  Senecas," 
that  name  of  the  largest  of  the  Six  Nations,  which 
stood  in  the  popular  minds  for  the  whole  of  the  allied 
savages.  There  were  present  Generals  Knox,  Wayne, 
Greene,  Maxwell ;  Colonels  Hand,  Eyre,  Steuben, 
Proctor,  and  Alexander  Hamilton,  Captain  Adam 
Vrooman  and  his  son  Claes.  From  Generals  Clinton 
and  Poor  and  Domine  Kirkland,  letters  recently  re 
ceived  were  read.  General  Sullivan  was  already  at 
Easton,  where  also  were  boat-building  parties  from 
the  Eyre  shipyards,  some  of  whom  were  to  go  for 
ward  to  Wyoming  and  Tioga  Point. 

The  "Seneca  country"  was  a  common  phrase  for 
the  great  unknown  land,  rich  in  lakes,  waterfalls,  and 
cleared  maize  land,  of  central  and  western  New 
York,  —  the  granary  of  the  Six  Nations.  There  were, 
indeed,  what  professed  to  be  maps  of  the  region  lying 
on  the  table,  and  the  heads  of  Washington's  generals 
were  bent  over  them.  But,  apart  from  showing  the 
lines  of  the  rivers  and  in  a  vague  way  the  position  of 
the  lakes  and  Indian  "  castles "  or  fortified  towns, 
there  was  very  little  exact  information  to  be  gained 
about  this  rich  region  threaded  only  by  Indian  trails. 


5O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

The  great  Iroquois  confederacy  dominated  a  region 
twelve  hundred  miles  long  and  six  hundred  miles  wide, 
but  their  houses  and  firesides  lay  between  the  Hudson 
River  and  Niagara  Falls  and  between  Lake  Ontario 
and  Tioga  Point  at  the  forks  of  the  Susquehanna, 
almost  the  whole  area  being  within  the  length  and 
breadth  of  New  York.  The  Long  House,  as  they 
called  their  domain,  had  four  doors,  the  northern  at 
Oswego,  and  the  southern,  where  all  the  trails  from 
the  four  points  of  the  compass  met,  at  Tioga  Point, 
where  the  two  rivers,  the  Chemung  and  the  outlet  of 
Otsego  Lake  forming  the  Susquehanna,  meet.  This 
southern  door  was  ever  guarded  by  a  vigilant  Seneca 
chief.  Near  by  were  the  great  maize  lands  of  Queen 
Esther,  who  had  figured  so  cruelly  in  the  Wyoming 
massacre.  The  eastern  door  was  at  Schenectady,  and 
the  western  at  Niagara. 

Washington,  feeling  in  duty  bound  to  do  so,  had 
offered  the  command  of  this  expedition,  for  which 
one-third  of  the  whole  Continental  army  was  to  be 
spared,  to  General  Horatio  Gates,  his  old  comrade  on 
Braddock's  field.  But  this  officer,  pride-swollen  with 
victory  at  Saratoga  over  Burgoyne  —  though  Ganse- 
voort  at  Oriskany,  Stark  at  Bennington,  Arnold  at 
Stillwater,  and  in  all  the  wisdom  and  skill  of  Schuyler, 
who  had  foreseen  and  prepared  every  element  of  suc 
cess,  had  wrought  the  results  which  secured  French 
recognition  —  declined  Washington's  generous  offer. 
This  was  done  in  language  which  plainly  irritated  the 


RAAD    VOOR   DAAD  51 

commander-in-chief,  who  then  turned  to  Sullivan. 
Young,  —  for  he  was  not  yet  forty,  —  alert,  of  hand 
some  military  bearing,  zealously  patriotic,  not  indeed 
able  to  avoid  mistakes,  but  ever  quick  to  rectify  or 
neutralize  them,  Major-General  John  Sullivan  was  the 
man  for  the  emergency.  He  was  one  not  likely  to  be 
"  Braddocked." 

Washington  might  have  offered  the  command  to 
Major-General  Anthony  Wayne,  but  this  gallant 
officer  had  other  work  to  do ;  and  do  it  he  did,  that 
very  summer  of  1 779.  Wayne,  as  elegantly  gotten  up 
in  his  dress  as  a  Chestnut  Street  beau,  politely  and 
formally  present  in  body  but  hardly  in  spirit,  took 
only  a  general  interest  in  the  council.  During  some 
of  the  discussions  of  details  over  maps,  he  even  pulled 
out  a  book,  which  was  no  other  than  Smollett's  novel 
of  "  Roderick  Random,"  and  began  to  read  in  snatches. 
It  told  the  story  of  Admiral  Vernon's  expedition 
against  the  Spaniards  in  Cuba,  in  which  Washington's 
older  brother,  Lawrence,  had  taken  part.  This,  as  we 
all  know,  had  resulted  in  the  naming  of  the  family 
estate  on  the  "  Mount  "  by  the  Potomac  and  in  the 
bringing  home  of  a  comrade,  the  Dutchman  Jacob  van 
Braam,  who  had  taught  the  boy  of  ten,  now  the  great 
commander  Washington,  broadsword  and  infantry  ex 
ercises  and  a  knowledge  of  fortification.  Wayne  had 
come  provided  with  "  food  for  the  mind."  He  had  per 
fect  confidence  in  Sullivan,  while,  in  planning  a  battle 
or  a  campaign,  Washington  was  in  his  eyes  infallible. 


52     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Washington,  who  always  made  an  allowance  of 
five  minutes  for  difference  in  timepieces, — for  split- 
second  watches  were  not  yet  invented,  —  called  the 
meeting  to  order  at  the  moment  of  10.05  A-M- 
He  laid  down  his  own  watch  on  the  table,  and, 
addressing  Colonel  Hand,  said:  "What  shall  we  do 
for  guides  and  interpreters  ?  You  are  going  among 
Indians  that  speak  various  languages.  Fortunately 
no  European  language,  other  than  English,  will 
be  needed.  You  will  not  have  my  unpleasant  ex 
perience  of  years  ago." 

"  Ah,"  said  Colonel  Hand,  ever  alert ;  "  may  I  ask 
your  Excellency  what  that  was  ?  " 

"  Well,  not  knowing  French,  I  had  to  trust  to  my 
former  military  instructor,  Van  Braam,  whose  ac 
quaintance  with  English  was  as  defective  as  was 
mine  with  French.  In  the  correspondence  with 
Commander  Contrecceur,  I  and  my  party,  after  we 
had  captured  Dumonville  and  his  men,  were  made 
out  to  be  'assassins.'  The  Senecas  were  our  allies 
then,  and  the  Half  King  helped  us.  Yet  I  suffered 
less  than  Van  Braam ;  for,  on  our  return  to  Virginia, 
the  storm  of  ridicule  so  angered  my  Dutch  friend 
that  he  threw  up  his  commission,  sold  his  lands,  and 
is  now  somewhere  in  the  British  army.  You  will 
have  no  experience  of  that  kind,  I  hope.  Have  you 
selected  a  pilot  ? " 

"  My  young  friend  Vrooman,"  said  Colonel  Hand, 
"can  certainly  guide  any  force  that  will  advance 


RAAD    VOOR    DA AD  53 

through  the  Mohawk  Valley  and  into  the  region 
westward,  for  he  has  been  as  far  as  Conesus,  which, 
I  am  told,  is  the  westernmost  lake  in  that  wonderful 
crescent  line,  around  the  shores  of  which  the  Indians 
are  most  thickly  settled.  He  tells  me  also  that  there 
is  a  Connecticut  gentleman,  a  clergyman,  who  has 
actually  lived  among  the  Oneidas.  He  speaks  not 
only  their  language  well  but  knows  other  Indian 
dialects." 

"  What  is  his  name  ? "  asked  the  commander-in- 
chief  of  Claes  Vrooman. 

"The  Reverend  Domine  Samuel  Kirkland,"  re 
plied  Claes. 

"Very  good,"  said  Washington.  "He  is  an  old 
friend.  Your  words  confirm  a  letter  I  have  received 
from  the  domine  himself.  We  must  have  him 
appointed  as  chaplain,  and  he  can  take  some  of  his 
friendly  Oneidas,  our  allies,  with  him,  of  whom  Mr. 
Vrooman  has  told  Colonel  Hand.  At  least  this  one 
of  the  Six  Nations  has  cast  in  its  lot  with  us.  We 
are  to  have  a  visit  from  their  warriors  in  a  few  days. 
A  delegation  is  now  on  its  way  here." 

It  was  at  this  council  table  in  Middlebrook,  after 
the  opinions  of  Knox,  Steuben,  and  Greene  had  been 
especially  drawn  out  and  expressed,  that  the  plan 
of  the  campaign  was  definitely  formed  and  the 
forces  assigned.  It  was  decided  to  detach  at  least 
five  thousand  men  for  the  task,  —  a  number  which  at 
once  revealed  the  seriousness  of  the  work  in  hand, 


54     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

for  that  meant  one-third  of  the  whole  Continental 
army. 

Though  hundreds  of  miles  apart,  there  was  to  be 
a  right  and  left  wing  to  the  main  body.  The  centre 
under  Sullivan  was  to  move  from  Easton,  the  right 
wing  under  Clinton  from  Schenectady,  and  the  left 
under  Broadhead  from  Pittsburg.  Thus  supported 
on  either  flank,  east  and  west,  the  Continental  army 
of  chastisement  was  to  sweep  all  Iroquoisia. 

Colonel  Broadhead,  with  six  hundred  men,  was  to 
advance  into  northern  Pennsylvania  and  south 
western  New  York,  to  punish  the  Indians  there. 

At  Schenectady  General  Clinton  was  to  assemble 
his  New  York  and  Massachusetts  troops.  These 
were  to  proceed  up  the  valley  of  the  Mohawk. 
After  throwing  forward  detachments  to  chastise  the 
Onondagas,  the  men  were  to  load  their  boats  and 
stores  on  wagons  at  Canajoharie,  and  then  cross  the 
country  to  Lake  Otsego.  There  they  would  build 
a  dam  and  raise  the  combined  waters  of  this  and 
Schuyler  Lake.  By  floating,  poling,  or  pushing 
down  into  the  Susquehanna,  they  were  to  deliver  the 
ammunition  and  stores  at  Tioga  Point.  It  seemed 
a  bold  and  toilsome  enterprise,  but  Clinton  was  not 
only  brave  and  inclined  to  new  projects,  but  was  a 
skilled  engineer.  From  Easton,  the  New  Hampshire, 
Pennsylvania,  and  New  Jersey  regiments  under 
Poor,  Hubley,  and  Maxwell,  the  artillery  under 
Proctor,  and  the  riflemen  under  Colonel  Hand,  were 


RAAD    VOOR   DAAD  55 

to  set  out  by  way  of  Wyoming  for  Tioga  Point,  to 
force  the  southern  door  of  the  Indian  confederacy, 
and  lay  the  "  Long  House  "  in  ashes.  Henceforth, 
Washington  was  to  be  known  among  the  Iroquois 
as  the  "  Town  Destroyer." 

Colonel  Eyre  was  to  relieve  Colonel  Proctor  in 
command  of  the  forts  on  the  Delaware.  The  two 
artillery  officers  had  been  young  men  of  energy  and 
enterprise  in  the  shipyard  of  Richard  Wright,  Colo 
nel  Eyre's  father-in-law,  where  the  young  Irishman 
was  very  popular.  Having  learned  the  handling  of 
cannon,  Proctor  raised  a  company,  and  in  two  years 
rose  to  be  colonel.  At  Middlebrook,  Eyre  and  Proc 
tor  had  already  renewed  each  other's  acquaintance, 
and  were  sitting  together. 

"  I  am  putting  a  severe  task  upon  General  Sullivan 
and  yourselves,  gentlemen,"  said  Washington,  ad 
dressing  especially  Maxwell,  Hand,  and  Proctor.  "To 
take  so  large  an  army  so  far  into  the  wilderness 
seems  like  invading  a  foreign  country;  but  there  is 
not  only  an  imperative  need  of  the  expedition  in 
order  to  cut  off  these  flank  attacks  of  savages  and 
Tories,  but  as  one  born  on  the  soil,  I  feel  that,  while 
grateful  for  foreign  assistance,  we  must  depend 
largely  upon  ourselves.  If  our  country  is  to  be  made 
free,  it  must  be  by  Americans.  We  cannot  afford  to 
sit  idly  by  and  wait  for  the  French  to  come  and  do 
our  work.  The  orders  of  the  Congress  are  explicit. 
Our  cruel  enemies  are  to  be  so  punished  that  their 


56     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

strength  will  be  broken.  Their  country  is  to  be  so 
devastated  that  it  will  be  not  possible  for  the  savages 
to  occupy,  the  land  again  during  the  war.  I  have 
taken  every  precaution,  based  on  experience,  and 
shall  furnish  General  Sullivan  with  all  of  the  riflemen 
we  can  spare, — at  least  two  hundred,  if  possible,  —  for 
these  men  are  used  to  the  forest  and  to  Indian  ways. 
I  have  placed  the  light  infantry  under  command  of 
Colonel  Hand,  who  also  has  had  experience  in  Indian 
warfare.  Although  it  will  be  difficult  and  toilsome 
to  transport  the  artillery,  yet  I  rely  upon  its  power  of 
inspiring  terror  among  the  savages.  The  labor  ex 
pended  in  transportation  will,  I  feel  sure,  be  justified. 
In  the  other  brigade  commanders,  Poor  and  Clin 
ton,  I  repose  the  highest  confidence.  Besides  the 
skilled  guides,  I  shall  order  Erskine  and  Lodge,  of 
the  topographical  engineers,  to  measure  the  route  and 
make  maps  of  the  region  traversed.  So,  good  day." 
Thereupon  Washington,  leaving  the  members  of 
the  council  to  the  courtesies  of  his  aide,  Alexander 
Hamilton,  left  the  room,  and  adjournment  was  soon 
the  order  of  the  hour. 


CHAPTER  V 

GAYETY  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  CAMP 

WHAT  happened  at  Middlebrook,  while  Colonel 
Eyre  remained  a  fortnight  with  the  army,  is 
thus  told  in  a  letter  which  he  wrote  to  his  wife,  who 
had  charged  him  to  tell  her  particularly  about  the 
ladies  at  the  camp  and  in  the  country  around.  Dur 
ing  the  whole  war  there  was  probably  no  place  at 
which  the  officers  of  the  Continental  army  had  a 
pleasanter  time  during  winter  quarters  than  at 
Middlebrook,  in  central  New  Jersey.  Here  was  the 
very  reverse  of  the  gloom  and  misery  at  Valley  Forge 
the  year  previous.  Colonel  Eyre  was  a  keen  observer 
and  a  diligent  letter-writer.  Hence  his  impressions 
are  worth  our  notice.  He  was  not  averse  to  amus 
ing  his  wife  with  delightful  bits  of  gossip  which  he 
with  his  brother  officers  enjoyed. 

Let  us  open  the  yellow  time-stained  packet  of  his 
letters,  and  see  with  his  eyes  what  was  worth  looking 
at  in  the  Jersey  cantonments :  — 

"CAMP  AT  MIDDLEBROOK  HEIGHTS, 
"May  31,  1779. 

"  DEAR  WIFE  POLLY  AND  DAUGHTER  PEGGY  :  I  must 
tell  you  of  my  ride  hither  in  the  pleasant  company  of 

57 


58     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Colonel  Hand  and  Captain  Vrooman  and  his  son. 
When  I  remember  Valley  Forge,  with  its  hunger  and 
rags,  its  misery  and  sufferings,  I  can  hardly  believe 
that  this  is  the  same  army,  but  it  is.  Baron  Steuben 
has  accomplished  wonders  in  drill,  tactics,  and  inspec 
tion  of  arms  and  equipments.  Our  men,  after  hav 
ing  met  the  enemy  in  the  open  field  at  Monmouth, 
feel  in  wonderfully  high  spirits.  This  is  a  rich  coun 
try,  and  there  are  many  fine  old  homes  and  farms 
here.  Besides  the  pretty  girls  and  stately  matrons 
of  the  county,  many  of  the  officers  have  their  wives, 
and  in  some  cases  their  whole  families.  You  would 
be  surprised  at  the  gayety  in  the  camp.  Some  of 
the  dinners  given  are  more  like  those  which  we  are 
apt  to  associate  with  Walnut  Street,  rather  than  with 
the  heart  of  New  Jersey. 

"  Let  me  first  say,  as  I  must  always,  a  good  word 
about  the  loyalty  and  patriotism  of  our  soldiers. 
They  live  as  they  have  fought,  like  men  determined 
to  be  free.  Every  effort  has  been  made  by  the 
king's  emissaries  to  persuade  our  men,  and  all  sorts 
of  rewards  offered  to  them,  to  desert.  Indeed,  I 
have  found  that  during  this  winter  past  some  of  the 
regimental  camps  have  been  flooded  with  printed 
circulars,  urging  the  soldiers  to  come  again  under 
King  George's  banner,  with  promise  of  pay  and 
honors;  but  very  few  have  yielded.  Mr.  Paine's 
patriotic  tracts  have  handsomely  neutralized  the 
Tory  treason. 


GAYETY  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  CAMP       5Q 

"  The  Jersey  people,  too,  are  nobly  loyal.  Wash 
ington  has  done  all  in  his  power  to  protect  them  from 
the  marauders  and  disorderly  elements  in  the  army. 
Any  thief  caught  meets  with  speedy  punishment. 
Recently  our  commander  gave  a  lesson  which  is  not 
likely  to  be  soon  forgotten.  Late  in  April,  after  a 
mighty  crowd  of  people  had  gathered,  and  two  regi 
ments  of  soldiers  had  been  drawn  up  in  a  hollow 
square,  five  deserters  sat  on  their  coffins  under  a  gal 
lows  with  the  halters  around  their  necks.  Alongside 
of  each  was  an  open  grave,  for  each  one  to  fill.  Two 
did  swing,  but  three  were  pardoned. 

"  In  another  case  nine  men  went  through  the  same 
dramatic  ordeal,  but  all  except  one  were  reprieved, 
the  coffins  taken  away,  and  the  graves  filled  up  with 
earth.  The  ninth  man  had  to  swing,  for  he  had 
forged  discharges  by  which  the  army  lost  nearly  one 
hundred  men.  I  am  happy  to  say.  that  the  Consisto 
ries  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  churches  here,  through 
their  domine,  Rev.  Jacob  Hardenbergh,  the  son  of 
the  New  York  militia  colonel,  have  sent  a  long  letter 
to  General  Washington,  thanking  him  for  his  vigilance 
in  maintaining  strict  discipline  throughout  the  army. 
This  letter  General  Washington  answered  with  his 
usual  clearness  and  suavity. 

"The  domine  is  so  hated  of  the  Tories  that  he 
sleeps  with  a  loaded  musket  by  his  bedside.  Prince 
ton  has  heaped  honors  on  his  head,  and  made  him 
doctor  of  divinity.  I  suppose  the  British  will  burr 


6O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

his  meeting-house  as  soon  as  the  army  moves  else 
where. 

"  But  now  to  more  cheerful  things.  I  could  not  now 
take  time  to  tell  you  about  all  the  fine  officers  I  have 
met  here.  I  shall  leave  that  till  I  see  you  again  ;  but 
of  some  I  must  speak.  Our  fellow  Pennsylvanian, 
Anthony  Wayne,  is  as  much  of  a  dandy  as  when  we 
knew  him  before  the  war.  He  always  looks  as  if  he 
had  just  stepped  out  of  a  bandbox,  but  is  one  of  the 
bravest  of  the  brave.  It  is  not  only  we  "  free 
Quakers,"  who  wear  soldier  clothes,  but  Dutch  and 
German  Reformed  domines  also. 

"  Muhlenburg  —  '  the  time  to  preach  and  the  time 
to  fight'  parson-general  —  is  as  fat  as  ever,  like  his 
wife,  who  is  with  him.  They  entertain  frequently, 
not  only  with  suppers  but  with  dances.  It  is  very 
rare,  they  say,  that  the  fun  is  over  before  two  or  three 
o'clock  in  the  morning.  In  spite  of  these  muddy 
roads  —  as  red  as  Margaret's  cheek  when  she  blushes 
—  there  is  a  good  deal  of  social  life  and  visiting  of 
officers'  wives,  one  with  the  other.  Judging  by  the 
immaculate  whiteness  and  elegant  doing  up  of  the 
ladies'  collars  and  ruffles,  there  must  be  a  good  deal 
of  starch  consumed  in  the  cantonment. 

"  The  country  houses  here  are,  many  of  them,  built 
of  Holland  brick,  and  the  Holland  Dutch  who  live  in 
them  are  a  very  hospitable  set  of  people.  They  cer 
tainly  know  what  good  living  is.  I  have  been  inter 
ested  to  notice  how  differently  the  men  from 


GAYETY  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  CAMP       6 1 

Connecticut  or  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  or  New 
Jersey,  do  things.  Each  set  has  its  own  way,  but  it 
is  certainly  a  good  thing  for  our  country  to  bring  the 
patriots  of  the  different  states  together,  to  stand 
shoulder  to  shoulder  in  one  common  interest. 

"  Near  Chimney  Rock,  which  is  a  piece  of  high 
ground  easily  seen  from  New  Brunswick,  Major-Gen 
eral  Putnam's  division  is  encamped.  With  them  is 
Colonel  Gibson's  Virginia  regiment,  with  the  surgeon 
of  which,  Thatcher  by  name,  I  had  a  long  and  pleas 
ant  talk.  General  Greene,  of  Rhode  Island,  whom  I 
have  met  before,  has  his  headquarters  in  a  snug  stone 
house  belonging  to  a  Mr.  Van  Veghten,  a  hale  old 
gentleman  of  about  eighty  years  of  age.  I  have  had 
considerable  business  with  General  Greene,  who  is 
now  quartermaster-general.  His  wife  is  a  lovely 
woman  and  extremely  handsome.  If  I  am  not  un- 
gallant,  and  if  you  will  not  be  jealous,  I  should  say 
that  her  bright  gray  eyes  had  not  seen  more  than 
twenty-five  years  of  experience  in  this  world.  Her 
conversation  is  certainly  very  delightful. 

"  Of  course  I  am  most  interested  in  the  artillery, 
which  I  find  is  parked  at  Pluckamin.  Here  they  hold 
a  sort  of  school  of  war  in  the  academy  building,  the 
young  officers  and  men  receiving  instruction  in  gun 
nery  and  tactics.  There  are  altogether  about  forty- 
nine  companies,  with  about  seventeen  hundred  men. 
They  wear  black  coats  with  red  facings.  Their  jack 
ets  and  breeches  are  of  white  wool,  and  their  hats  are 


62     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

of  yellow.  My  friend,  Colonel  Proctpr,  does  not  like 
this  new  uniform.  He  prefers  the  old  blue  coats 
faced  with  white  and  buff,  which  remind  him  of  old- 
country  politics  and  traditions  ;  but,  like  a  good  soldier, 
he  yields  to  Washington's  orders.  He  will  march  his 
artillery  men  into  the  wilderness  with  a  regiment  of 
black  coats  instead  of  blue.  He  is  to  take  nine  guns. 
How  I  wish  I  were  going  in  his  place ! 

"  Our  Pennsylvania  boys  under  Wayne  have  blue 
coats  lined  with  white,  ruffled  shirts,  red  flannel  leg 
gings,  and  caps  dressed  with  fur.  They  are  almost  as 
neat  as  their  general,  whose  nick  or  pet  name  '  Mad ' 
came  from  a  slouchy,  drunken  fellow.  His  regiments 
form  one  of  the  finest  brigades  in  the  Continental 
force.  Washington's  life-guards  wear  buff  and  blue, 
forming  a  splendid  body  of  men,  and  the  model  for 
the  army.  There  are  some  quite  bright  uniforms  in 
the  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  lines,  but  naturally  I 
am  most  interested  in  those  men  that  are  to  march 
westward  against  the  savages.  Nearly  all  the  Jersey- 
men  wear  blue,  turned  up  with  red.  The  New  Hamp 
shire  men,  who  are  to  join  Sullivan,  are  now  in  camp 
at  Redding,  Connecticut,  or  on  their  march  to  the  Dela 
ware  Valley.  The  general,  as  usual,  is  ahead  of  time, 
and  already  at  Easton.  How  well  I  remember  him 
'  at  Brandywine,  —  a  dark-featured,  bright-eyed  man, 
with  rosy  cheeks,  and  as  handsome  as  a  picture. 
This  morning  I  received  a  letter  from  him.  He  is 
delighted  with  his  appointment  and  work.  Think  of 


GAYETY  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  CAMP       63 

his  seeing  the  New  York  lakes  and  perhaps  pushing 
on  to  Niagara ! 

"  I  must  tell  you  a  curious  little  anecdote,  which 
shows  how  narrow  and  bigoted  some  sectarians  can 
be.  You  know  how  harshly  some  of  the  Friends 
have  spoken  of  us  'free  Quakers,'  because  we  have 
taken  up  arms  for  our  country's  freedom,  and  how 
uncharitable  some  of  them  are  in  their  judgments;  but 
I  think  the  Dutch  churchmen  here  have  gone  further. 
My  chief  of  artillery,  General  Knox,  told  me  about  it. 
Mrs.  Knox  has  insisted  on  being  with  her  husband 
and  sharing  his  privations  in  camp,  so  that  it  is  no 
wonder  that  two  of  her  children  have  died  in  infancy. 
They  are  Congregationalists,  as  indeed  nearly  all  the 
New  Englanders  are,  and  this,  in  the  eyes  of  the 
Dutch  Calvinists,  means  something  dangerous, 
though  both  sorts  of  churchmen  honor  the  Geneva 
reformer. 

"A  short  time  ago  Mrs.  Knox's  second  baby,  born 
in  the  camp  here,  died.  The  father  and  mother 
wished  the  little  one  to  be  buried  in  the  churchyard, 
but  the  elders  in  the  Great  Consistory  are  so  fright 
fully  orthodox  that  they  declined  allowing  the  infant 
to  be  buried  within  the  cemetery.  Is  not  this  like 
what  Christ  said  about  '  despising  the  little  ones '  ? 
The  little  grave  lies  about  ten  yards  west  of  the 
'meeting-house,'  as  we  would  say,  for  we  find  it  hard 
to  call  anything  made  of  brick  or  stone  a  '  church,' 
which  can  only  be  made  up  of  living  souls. 


64     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

"  I  am  bound  to  say  that  the  general's  host,  old 
Jacobus  van  der  Veer,  is  very  angry  about  the  Con 
sistory's  action,  especially  as  he  gave  the  ground  to 
the  church,  for  he  himself  has  suffered  from  the  same 
narrowness  and  bigotry.  Several  years  ago  his  own 
daughter,  who  was  insane,  was  denied  burial  on  ac 
count  of  her  infirmity.  When  will  the  world  learn 
that  insanity  is  not  necessarily  a  proof  of  God's  dis 
favor?  So  he  buried  his  daughter  just  outside  the 
line  fence,  and  when  the  general  was  informed  he 
could  not  put  his  baby's  corpse  in  the  cemetery,  Mr. 
Van  de  Veer  took  my  chief  by  the  hand  and  led  him 
out  by  his  daughter's  grave,  and  with  a  choking  voice 
said,  '  General,  this  is  my  ground ;  bury  your  child 
here.' 

"  I  have  been  to  several  tea  drinkings,  dinners,  and 
evening  companies,  and  if  I  were  to  give  the  list 
of  ladies,  it  would  be  a  long  one.  Mrs.  Washing 
ton,  Mrs.  Knox,  Mrs.  Lott  from  near  Morristown, 
Lady  Sterling  and  her  brilliant  daughter  Kitty,  Mrs. 
Greene,  a  Miss  Brown  from  Virginia,  and  Misses  Katy 
and  Betsey  Livingston,  daughters  of  the  governor 
of  New  Jersey,  are  in  the  cantonment.  His  married 
daughter,  Mrs.  John  Jay,  has  also  been  here.  She 
has  so  wonderfully  brilliant  a  complexion  that  stran 
gers  think  it  must  come  from  rouge,  though  those 
who  know  her  best  say  it  is  nature's  own  blush. 
Then  there  are  the  five  handsome  and  well-bred 
daughters  of  Philip  van  Home,  who  lives  at  Phil's 


GAYETY  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  CAMP       65 

Hill.  He  is  a  fine  man,  but  his  weakness  seems  to 
be  a  desire  to  cultivate  friendship  with  the  friends 
both  of  King  George  and  the  Continental  Congress. 

"  On  great  occasions,  such  as  a  review,  ladies  come 
up  from  Princeton,  Elizabethtown,  and  Basking  Ridge ; 
but,  handsome  as  they  are,  I  must  tell  you  of  the 
superb  officers  here,  for  example,  Colonel  Alexander 
Hamilton.  He  is  only  twenty-two  years  old,  has,  be 
sides  rosy  cheeks  and  powdered  hair,  such  amiable 
manners  and  agreeable  presence,  that  he  makes  every 
visitor  a  friend.  He  is  single,  and  I  wonder  what 
lady  he  is  yet  to  win.  The  only  person  whom  I  ever 
heard  of  having  taken  offence  at  him  for  being  asked 
to  wait,  while  General  Washington  was  busy,  was 
that  rather  impetuous  Pole,  Count  Pulaski. 

"  Two  other  officers  in  Washington's  military  fam 
ily  are  Colonel  Tench,  Tilghman,  and  William  Colfax, 
the  latter  being  chief  of  Washington's  body-guard. 
I  could  not  exaggerate  the  beauty  of  his  clear,  florid 
complexion  and  expressive  blue  eyes.  He  is  such  a 
favorite  of  Mrs.  Washington  that  she  has  knit  for 
him,  with  her  own  hands,  a  linen  thread  net  for  his 
queue. 

"  He  is  engaged  to  Hester,  a  daughter  of  Jasper 
Schuyler,  cousin  of  General  Philip  Schuyler. 

"  By  the  way,  it  may  interest  you  to  know  that  her 
great-grandfather,  Arendt  Schuyler,  was  named  after 
that  famous  friend  of  the  Indians,  Arendt  van  Cur 
ler,  who  a  century  and  a  half  ago  so  impressed  the 


66     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

redmen  with  his  honesty  and  justice  that  they  still 
call  the  governors  of  New  York  after  his  name,  and 
their  bond  of  loyalty  to  the  king  'the  covenant  of 
Corlaer,'  of  which  more  anon.  '  Corlaer '  is  a  name 
to  conjure  by  among  the  Indians ;  and,  by  plying 
them  with  the  name  of  this  Dutchman,  who  died 
over  a  century  ago,  and  is  a  sort  of  saint  or  holy 
father  among  the  Iroquois,  the  British  won  them 
to  their  side." 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  GENERAL  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMIES 

"  I  MUST  tell  you  about  Washington's  body-guard, 
1  which  numbers  one  hundred  and  eighty  men. 
They  wear  blue  coats  faced  with  buff,  red  waistcoats, 
buckskin  breeches,  white  belts,  and  black  cocked  hats 
trimmed  with  white  capes,  being  as  superb  a  body  of 
men  as  I  have  ever  seen.  Among  them  are  several 
Pennsylvania  Germans,  who  are  great  singers  of 
hymns.  One  song  I  heard  so  often  that  I  copied  it 
down,  and  here  it  is :  — 

" '  England's  Georgel,  Kaiser,  Koenig, 
1st  fur  Gott  und  us  zu  weinig.' 

"  I  hear  that  they  go  into  battle  singing  this  as  a  re 
frain.  Roughly  translated,  it  means  that  King  George 
is  not  great  enough  to  inspire  loyalty,  and  that  God 
means  it  to  be  so. 

"  A  very  funny  incident  happened  here  a  few  weeks 
ago.  It  was  rumored  that  Captain  Simcoe  was  riding 
through  the  country,  hoping,  with  his  Queen's  Rang 
ers,  to  dash  between  the  lines  and  seize  Washing 
ton's  person.  It  was  wonderful  to  see  how  quickly, 
on  the  alarm  being  given,  the  life-guards  showed 

67 


68     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

their  mettle.  They  leaped  out  of  their  huts,  half 
dressed,  and  unceremoniously  taking  possession  of 
headquarters,  bolted  and  barricaded  the  door.  Then 
they  threw  open  every  window,  at  which  five  men 
could  be  seen,  with  guns  loaded  and  cocked,  waiting 
until  a  regiment  or  two  from  the  camp  should  turn 
out  and  form  around  the  house. 

"  The  alarm  proved  to  be  a  false  one ;  but  at  the 
dinner  table  Mrs.  Washington  told,  most  amusingly, 
how  she  had  to  put  her  head  under  the  bed-clothes, 
and  entrenched  herself  with  pillows,  so  as  to  keep 
warm  while  the  winter  breezes  swept  through  her 
bedroom ;  for  the  men  stood  guard  till  they  were  or 
dered  to  enter  their  huts  again,  and  the  Simcoe  sup 
posed  to  be  near  should  put  off  his  raid  till  a  more 
favorable  day.  There  have  been  so  many  cases  on 
both  sides  of  officers  being  captured  in  their  beds, 
that,  between  enterprise  and  vigilance,  there  are  some 
lively  episodes. 

"  General  Washington  seems  to  appoint  men  out  of 
sheer  merit,  and  not  out  of  personal  favor.  Neverthe 
less,  if  I  were  a  betting  man,  I  should  wager  a  dinner 
of  the  best  Pennsylvania  '  dump  noodles  and  schnitz,' 
with  the  ham  and  molasses  thrown  in,  that  '  Light- 
horse  Harry  Lee,'  a  young  cavalry  officer  here,  has 
been  sentimentally  favored  by  Washington  and  given 
the  separate  command  of  three  companies  of  light 
horse,  although  he  is  only  twenty-three  years  old. 
Mrs.  Greene  says  that  Harry  Lee's  mother,  when  a 


THE  GENERAL  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMIES   69 

young  girl,  made  Washington's  heart  bounce  up  and 
down,  and  many  thought,  from  his  attentions  to  her 
at  one  time  that  they  were  both  in  love  with  each  other 
and  engaged  to  be  married.  But,  until  our  general 
met  the  widow  Custis,  he  does  not  seem  to  have  been 
very  successful  as  a  lover. 

"  '  Light-horse  Harry  Lee  is  a  graduate  of  Prince 
ton  College,  and  a  very  graceful  fellow.  He  is  an 
especial  favorite  at  the  Van  Veghten  house,  which  I 
enjoy  visiting  so  often,  though  I  am  frequently  at  the 
Middlebrook  tavern  also,  where  I  meet  many  officers, 
among  whom  I  am  delighted  with  Colonel  Alexander 
Scammel,  now  thirty-five  years  old  and  an  adjutant- 
general  of  the  army.  He  stands  six  feet  two  in  his 
stockings,  and  is  a  big-hearted  fellow.  He  is  self- 
doomed  to  bachelorhood,  for  his  lady  love  up  in 
Connecticut  will  have  him  only  on  condition  of  his 
leaving  the  army.  Yet,  though  he  loves  her,  he 
loves  his  country  more,  and  has  broken  off  the 
engagement. 

"  It  would  not  do  to  close  my  gallery  of  silhouettes 
without  telling  you  of  Captain  Duponceau,  Captain 
James  Fairlie,  and  Captain  William  North,  who  are 
of  the  baron's  family.  The  first  is  a  Frenchman, 
with  a  proneness  to  kiss  pretty  girls  that  may  get 
him  into  trouble.  The  second  tells  such  funny  sto 
ries  that  even  Washington  laughs  at  them.  They 
even  say  that  once,  in  crossing  the  Hudson  River, 
the  general  actually  rolled  off  his  seat  and  came  near 


7O  THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

capsizing  the  craft,  for  Fairlie  was  so  funny.  Think 
of  that !  As  for  North,  he  is  Steuben's  right  arm  in 
making  the  German  discipline  popular. 

"  It  is  a  wonderful  picture  of  society  that  I  see 
here.  I  confess  that  I  am  surprised  to  find  so  much 
of  it  in  the  camp,  yes,  perhaps  even  more,  relatively, 
at  least,  than  in  the  city.  The  visiting  ladies,  on 
social  occasions,  wear  high,  round  hats  with  long 
feathers,  and  their  satin  petticoats,  taffetas,  and  bro 
cades  seem  to  me  to  be  simply  gorgeous,  though  Mrs. 
Washington,  by  dressing  in  plainer  gowns,  with  only 
neat  kerchiefs,  tries  to  set  the  good  example  of  mod 
est  propriety.  So  long  as  the  Dutch  keep  open  for 
us  a  port  of  free  entry  and  departure  at  St.  Eusta- 
tius,  we  are  likely  to  enjoy  Europe's  luxuries ;  while, 
as  I  know  from  my  own  wife's  magical  powers  in  the 
same  direction,  you  can  trust  to  the  skilful  fingers 
and  needles  of  our  ladies  to  make  old  things  look 
new  and  handsome. 

"As  for  the  men,  they  enjoy  their  fine  clothes  as 
much  as  the  birds  do  their  feathers,  or  the  ladies 
their  hose  and  head-dresses.  What  is  there  in  war 
that  immediately  makes  men  put  on  finery  ?  Is  it  to 
please  the  ladies,  or  to  make  the  soldier's  short  life 
gay  while  it  lasts  ?  Washington  himself,  in  his  uni 
form  of  blue  and  buff,  varnished  boots,  and  three- 
cornered  hat,  is  '  the  glass  of  fashion  and  the  mould 
of  form '  for  all  of  us.  He  is  a  perfect  horseman, 
delighting  every  eye  that  looks  on  him.  Even  the 


THE  GENERAL  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMIES   7 1 

horse  seems  to  enjoy  being  ridden  by  such  a  capital 
equestrian.  As  to  fashions  of  the  hair,  the  older 
men,  on  social  occasions,  wear  their  wigs,  but  the 
younger  put  their  hair  in  a  queue  ;  and  you  can  be 
sure  that  both  lard  for  stiffening  and  powder  for 
whitening  are  plentifully  used. 

"  When  to  a  grand  review,  for  example,  the  fine 
ladies  drive  up  from  Basking  Ridge,  Morristown,  or 
Princeton,  I  almost  think  that  it  is  Sunday  morning, 
and  that  I  am  standing  on  Second  Street  near  Mar 
ket,  in  front  of  Christ's  Church,  as  I  see  these  gentle 
men,  in  gay  coats,  knee  breeches,  silk  stockings,  and 
buckled  shoes,  with  cocked  hats  under  their  arms, 
handing  out  the  gorgeously  apparelled  females  from 
their  carriages.  When  the  ladies  salute  their  gal 
lants  with  impressive  courtesies,  the  bow  of  the  head 
and  the  wave  of  the  leg  and  the  scraping  of  the 
ground  with  the  foot  make  such  a  picture  of  gayety 
that  I  wonder  whether,  after  all,  we  are  at  war. 

"  But,  as  a  people,  we  are  poor  enough,  too.  Our 
army  is  shamefully  small,  and  hard  money  is  lacking. 
Soon  enough,  no  doubt,  these  officers,  Greene  and 
Knox,  Muhlenberg  and  Steuben,  Maxwell  and  Hand, 
who  have  fought  on  the  red  clay  of  Brandywine,  in 
the  fog  at  Germantown,  and  over  the  rolling  land 
of  Monmouth,  will  be  amid  rjpwder,  smoke,  and 
blood  again.  Happily  for  our  future,  we  now  have 
Steuben's  '  Regulations  for  the  Infantry  of  the 
United  States '  put  into  good  English  by  Captain 


72     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Walker.  It  is  certain  that  the  artillery  was  never 
in  better  condition,,  while  the  cavalry,  if  dash  and 
valor  can  avail  anything,  will  certainly  make  their 
mark. 

"  One  of  the  funniest  sights  the  camp  has  yet  wit 
nessed  contrasted  strangely  with  the  magnificent 
review  of  the  army,  in  presence  of  the  French 
minister  Gerard  and  the  Spanish  envoy  Don  Juan 
de  Miralles,  of  which  I  must  tell  you.  The  latter 
has  been  sent  by  the  governor  of  Havana  to  look 
into  our  country  and  its  resources;  but  of  his  real 
intentions,  ability,  or  standing,  we  are  all  in  the 
dark.  Some  blame  Congress  for  unwisely  welcom 
ing  him ;  for,  although  Spain  may  be  our  friend  and 
yet  recognize  our  independence,  this  man  may  be 
a  spy  and  an  intriguer.  Spain  evidently  wants  to 
keep  Florida,  and  to  control  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
and  in  this  matter,  as  a  ship-builder,  I  am  deeply 
interested.  Some  of  the  Southern  officers,  whom  I 
have  met  here,  say  that  they  hope  Congress  will 
never  grant  to  any  foreign  power  the  free  navigation 
of  the  Mississippi,  or  give  it  up  for  a  pecuniary 
consideration. 

"  But  the  contrast  I  hinted  at  was  in  the  visit  of  a 
band  of  Indian  chiefs,  whose  faces  are  painted, 
their  heads  tufted  ,with  scalp-locks,  and  their  ears 
and  noses  hung  with  brass  and  copper  ornaments. 
They  rode  wretched  horses  without  saddles,  and  had 
old  ropes  and  straps  for  bridles.  Their  appearance 


THE  GENERAL  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMIES   73 

was  a  sorry  one,  but,  being  from  friendly  tribes, 
especially  the  Oneidas  and  Mohawks,  Washington 
thought  it  best  to  pay  them  considerable  deference, 
and  had  several  regiments  draw  up  in  line  on  dress 
parade  for  their  delectation.  He  sat  on  his  gray 
horse  and  was  followed  by  his  black  servant  Bill, 
in  addition  to  his  usual  escort.  I  am  sure  we  ought 
to  honor  these  Oneidas,  for  siding  with  us  against 
the  king.  Little  Tree,  a  Seneca  chief,  who  visited 
Philadelphia  and  the  general's  headquarters,  is  now 
believed  to  be  a  renegade,  as  '  Old  Smoke '  proved 
himself  to  be.  Hanyari,  the  Oneida  chief,  is  worth 
them  both. 

"To  conclude  this  too  long  letter,  it  has  been 
decided  that  the  three  brigades  of  Poor,  Maxwell, 
and  Hand,  with  several  companies  of  riflemen  and 
Colonel  Proctor's  artillery  regiment,  will  form  the 
main  force  against  the  Senecas.  They  will  report 
at  Easton  and  move  on  to  Tioga  Point,  which  is 
near  the  centre  of  the  boundary  line  between  New 
York  and  Pennsylvania,  and  there  join  Clinton's 
brigade,  from  Schenectady.  Proctor's  regimental 
band  is  also  going,  so  the  men  will  have  some  music. 
They  will  need  it,  to  cheer  them  up ;  for  hauling  the 
guns  in  a  forest  will  be  hard  work,  though  to  Tioga 
Point  they  will  go  in  boats. 

"  General  Maxwell  and  his  men  have  not  had  the 
quiet  winter  which  our  soldiers  at  Middlebrook  have 
enjoyed,  for,  late  in  February,  Colonel  Sterling,  with 


74     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

two  British  regiments  and  a  company  of  the  guards, 
tried  to  surprise  the  Jerseymen ;  but  the  general 
alertly  led  off  his  men  down  the  Rahway  Road. 
So  the  prowling  fox,  as  the  disappointed  hunter, 
who  failed  to  fill  his  game-bag,  called  him,  was 
neither  trapped  nor  slain.  Instead  of  being  cap 
tured,  the  Jerseymen  turned  on  their  foes  and  gave 
the  British  a  taste  of  cannon-ball  and  musketry, 
cutting  them  up  badly. 

"  Colonels  Ogden's,  Shrieve's,  and  Dayton's  regi 
ments,  with  some  men  from  Colonels  Spencer's  and 
Baldwin's  regiments,  will  form  Maxwell's  brigade, 
making  1 1 1  officers  and  1 294  men.  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Barber,  of  the  Third  New  Jersey,  is  to  be 
Sullivan's  chief  of  staff,  and  Captain  Aaron  Ogden,  of 
the  First  Regiment,  is  aide  to  General  Maxwell.  The 
New  Jersey  men  felt  very  bad  at  being  ordered  into 
the  wilderness  at  this  particular  time.  This  is  not 
because  they  are  not  brave  and  patriotic,  but  because 
the  currency  issued  by  Congress  is  so  nearly  worth 
less.  They  have  not  had  their  pay  for  many  months. 
I  am  told  that  here  a  colonel's  salary,  in  Continental 
pasteboard,  will  not  pay  for  his  horses'  oats,  and 
the  six  months'  pay  of  a  private  will  hardly  buy 
one  barrel  of  flour.  Fortunately,  however,  owing  to 
Governor  Livingston's  activity,  both  officers  and 
men  have  been  paid  some  hard  money,  the  officers 
two  hundred  dollars  and  the  men  forty  dollars  each. 
He  keeps  up  a  steady  correspondence  with  Holland, 


THE  GENERAL  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMIES   75 

and  is  sure  that  the  Dutch  republic  will  yet  recognize 
and  assist  our  country.  How  a  million  or  so  of 
guilders  would  cheer  us  all  up ! 

"The  first  and  third  New  Jersey  regiments  are 
already  at  Easton,  and  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
the  second,  Colonel  Shrieve's,  marching  past  us  the 
other  day.  They  were  entertained  first  by  the  citi 
zens  of  Elizabethtown  and  then  escorted  from  the 
village.  As  they  passed  through  our  camp  at  Mid- 
dlebrook,  the  hurrahs  of  our  soldiers,  who  envied 
them  the  prospect  of  an  active  campaign,  were  worth 
hearing.  I  am  told  that  the  cantonment  here  is 
likely  to  remain  nearly  intact  until  June,  but  I  must 
hasten,  for  my  orders  are  to  report  immediately  to 
the  Delaware  forts.  Perhaps  I  may  reach  you  almost 
as  soon  as  this  letter,  which  goes  out  from  camp  to 
night." 

Thus  ended  Colonel  Eyre's  letter.  He  did  not 
reach  home  for  a  fortnight  after  the  "express"  had 
delivered  his  message,  for  he  was  at  his  guns  in  the 
Delaware  forts,  guarding  against  a  rumored  British 
naval  raid  on  Philadelphia. 

Let  us  now  read  another  letter,  —  this  time  from 
the  north.  It  will  tell  us  how  his  friends  the  fron 
tiersmen  fared.  In  those  days,  Schenectady  was  in 
the  "  Far  West." 


CHAPTER   VII 

LIFE    IN    A    FRONTIER    TOWN 

"  SCHENECTADY,  N.Y.,  June  5,  1779. 

"  DEAR  COLONEL  EYRE  :  I  promised  to  write  to 
you  when  I  got  home  in  Schenectady,  and  tell  you 
how  my  native  town  — '  Dorp,'  we  call  it  —  looks  to  me 
after  many  months'  absence,  and  what  is  being  done 
by  the  military  here  in  preparation  for  the  Western 
Expedition  against  the  Tories  and  Indians.  Father 
and  I  left  Middlebrook,  and,  after  a  long  horseback 
ride,  came  to  Kingston,  where  I  saw  a  big  drove  of 
fat  cattle  starting  off  for  Otsego  Lake  to  furnish 
beef  for  Sullivan's,  or  rather  Clinton's,  army. 

"At  Esopus  we  took  boat  up  the  Hudson  River 
to  Albany  and  walked  overland,  arriving  here  day 
before  yesterday. 

"  You  would  like  to  know  how  a  frontier  town,  so 
different  from  Philadelphia,  looks  ?  This  settlement, 
made  in  1661  on  lands  bought  from  the  Mohawks  by 
Arendt  van  Curler,  was  laid  out  as  a  parallelogram, 
with  a  gate  at  the  south  on  the  road  to  Albany,  and 
one  on  the  north  toward  Canada.  In  between  are 

76 


LIFE    IN    A    FRONTIER    TOWN  77 

two  streets.  One  is  called  Church,  and  is  quite  wide, 
running  from  gate  to  gate ;  and  the  other  is  Cross, 
from  east  to  west.  The  town  is  surrounded  by  pali 
sades  made  by  cutting  trees,  sharpening  their  points 
and  driving  them  into  the  earth,  setting  them  three 
deep,  and  bracing  them  at  the  top  with  stout  timber. 
Inside  there  is  a  bank  or  way,  on  which  sentinels  or 
defenders  may  stand.  Outside  there  is  a  ditch,  and 
at  the  gates  drawbridges,  so  that  Indians  cannot 
force  the  place  by  a  sudden  attack.  Even  white 
men  would  have  difficulty  in  capturing  this  place, 
unless  well  provided  with  ladders  or  artillery  at  least 
as  heavy  as  six-pounders. 

"  The  Mohawk  River  bends  sharply  here,  and  the 
walls  run  along  Front,  Traders,  Martyrs,  and  Ferry 
streets.  Thus  two  sides  face  the  water,  the  main 
river,  and  the  Binne-kill  or  inside  branch.  Our 
streets  tell  their  story  even  better  than  yours,  which 
William  Penn  named  after  numbers  and  trees.  On 
Traders  Street  live  the  men  who  buy  and  sell.  Front 
street  really  fronts  the  river,  and  you  reach  the 
ferry  by  going  down  Ferry  Street.  The  Street  of 
the  Martyrs  is  that  on  which  so  many  fell  in  the 
bloody  Indian  massacre,  instigated  by  Louis  XIV. 
and  his  mistress,  Madame  de  Maintenon,  when  our 
Dutch  stadholder  was  also  England's  king,  in  1690. 
We  call  the  people  slaughtered  then,  '  martyrs,' 
for  they  died  for  their  religion,  as  well  as  because 
they  were  subjects  of  the  king  of  England,  Now 


78  THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

things  are  so  changed  that  the  savages  are  employed, 
not  by  the  French,  but  by  the  German  king  of  Great 
Britain. 

"  Since  the  war  broke  out,  our  wooden  walls  have 
been  extended  eastward  over  the  Wall  Street  and 
Maiden  Lane ;  for,  beside  the  townspeople  ordinarily 
living  here,  hundreds  of  refugees  from  the  Mohawk 
and  Schoharie  valleys  and  in  the  open  country  north 
ward  toward  Saratoga  have  come  to  dwell  in  this 
town.  The  increased  population,  together  with  the 
soldiers  who  have  at  various  times  camped  around 
on  the  hills  and  flats,  and  the  hospital  nurses  and 
doctors  on  Niskayuna  Street,  together  with  the  boat 
building  operations,  make  Dorp  a  bustling  place, 
almost  like  Philadelphia,  though  on  a  very  much 
smaller  scale.  If  Sullivan's  expedition  fails,  or  is 
only  in  part  successful,  we  shall  have  to  shelter  the 
friendly  Oneidas  here,  also. 

"  Sunday  evenings  we  generally  spend  in  sitting 
out  on  the  stoep,  the  men  smoking  and  chatting  with 
each  other  and  the  women,  while  the  young  folks  are 
sauntering  up  and  down,  though  I  tell  you  we  have 
fine  singing  in  some  of  the  houses,  or  by  companies 
gathered  often  on  the  porches.  It  is  surprising  how 
popular,  especially  since  the  outbreak  of  the  war 
for  Independence,  the  'Wilhelmus  Lied'  or  'Dutch 
National  Song,'  written  by  Sainte-Aldegonde,  is.  It 
was  my  wife's  especial  favorite.  I  wonder  if  she 
sings  it  in  her  captivity.  The  green  and  well-shaded 


LIFE    IN    A    FRONTIER    TOWN  79 

road  leading  past  the  burying-ground  is  a  favorite 
walk,  and  some  call  it  '  Lover's  Lane.' 

"  The  liveliest  part  of  the  town  is  on  the  strip 
of  ground  between  Front  Street  and  the  Mohawk. 
Here  the  boat  yards  are  as  busy  as  beehives  in  honey- 
making  time.  The  two  hundred  and  eight  boats 
ordered  are  nearly  all  finished.  They  are  made  for 
use  rather  than  beauty ;  for  they  are  to  go  with  heavy 
loads  in  shallow  water,  where  they  have  to  be  poled, 
pushed,  drawn,  and  coaxed,  as  well  as  sailed  occa 
sionally. 

"  General  Clinton's  plan  is  to  load  the  stores  on 
these  boats  and  move  up  the  river  to  Canajoharie. 
There,  teams  of  oxen  and  wagons  will  be  in  readiness 
to  transport  both  the  boats  and  the  stores  over  to 
Otsego  Lake,  one  of  the  sources  of  the  Susquehanna. 
Gay  and  eager  as  the  soldiers  seem  to  be  for  the  ex 
pedition,  I  really  fear  there  will  be  some  hard  swear 
ing,  when  it  comes  to  dragging  those  boats  and  barrels 
over  the  hills,  for  I  have  been  over  that  region  and 
know  it  to  be  rough.  Just  now  the  last  twenty  boats 
are  under  adze  and  hammer,  and  the  chips  are 
flying  at  a  lively  rate.  Kindling  wood  will  be  very 
handy  for  everybody,  this  coming  winter.  The  ground 
is  fairly  carpeted  with  shavings. 

"  On  week-days,  after  supper-time,  the  girls  and 
people  generally  come  down  to  romp  and  frolic 
among  the  boats  and  boat  yards,  and  to  see  the 
army  stores,  which  have  been  hauled  in  wagons 


8O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

overland  from  Albany,  put  on  board.  One  wonders 
whether  all  the  powder  in  these  casks  will  ever  be 
fired  off,  or  these  boxes  of  leaden  balls  be  all  used, 
there  are  so  many  of  them.  Entrenching  tools  and 
camp  gear,  big  bullet  moulds,  axes,  and  what  not, 
take  up  a  formidable  amount  of  room.  •  These  stores 
are  frightfully  clumsy  and  heavy,  but  I  suppose  are 
necessary.  The  rum  barrels  alone  fill  ten  boats  ;  for 
evidently  the  officers  are  going  to  have  a  good  time, 
despite  their  vowing,  one  and  all,  that,  under  Clinton 
they  will  never  be  '  Braddocked.'  I  hope  they  will 
not,  like  Braddock's  officers,  be  shot  with  their  nap 
kins  pinned  on  them.  As  for  buttons,  I  never  saw 
so  many  in  my  life  as  there  are  on  these  Massachu 
setts  troops.  They  fairly  dazzle  me.  A  rifleman, 
accustomed  to  a  brown  buckskin  hunting  frock,  can 
not  help  noticing  what  splendid  shooting  they  make 
for  an  Indian  behind  a  tree.  He  has  only  to  count 
down  to  the  fifth,  and  he  has  the  place  to  aim  at. 
They  make  nearly  as  good  a  target  as  a  British  offi 
cer's  gorget  or  brass  neckpiece.  This  campaign  will 
not  be  a  picnic. 

"  How  these  boats  are  ever  to  navigate  the  shallow 
Susquehanna  —  and  I  have  been  along  the  valley 
there  —  I  do  not  know;  but  Clinton  is  an  engineer, 
and  perhaps  he  can  store  up  the  water  in  Otsego 
Lake  to  fill  up  the  channels  lower  down  and  get  us 
to  Tioga  Point.  All  the  boats  will  be  finished  by 
June  1 5th.  Then,  while  the  regiments  march  on 


LIFE    IN    A    FRONTIER    TOWN  8 1 

land,  these  will  move  up  the  river.  I  hope  all  these 
boxes  and  barrels  contain  in  good  quality  what  they 
profess  to  have  inside,  for  I  know  of  some  pretty 
rascally  work  done  by  contractors  in  Albany  and 
Schenectady,  in  days  gone  by,  when  they  used  to 
supply  Oswego.  Last  Sunday,  I  thought  that  the 
Van  Loup  girls  were  rather  extravagantly  dressed, 
and  flaunted  rather  too  much  jewelry,  in  a  time  when 
so  many  are  suffering  for  clothing  and  shelter.  Every 
body  knows  that  their  father  cheated  both  the  king 
and  Congress,  in  the  supplies  which  he  furnished, 
first  for  Oswego,  and  then  for  the  Oriskany  cam 
paign.  They  proved  worthless  when  they  were  most 
wanted. 

"  The  boatmen  are  all  here,  and  ready  to  move  west. 
We  New  Yorkers  are  fortunate  in  having  such  a 
leader  as  General  George  Clinton,  and  such  colonels 
as  Gansevoort,  who  held  Fort  Stanwix  —  we  call  it 
Fort  Schuyler  now  —  so  gallantly  against  St.  Leger. 
Proud,  indeed,  are  we  of  our  red,  white,  and  blue  flag 
made  there,  out  of  white  linen  shirts,  red  flannel 
petticoats,  and  what-nots.  It  was  this  flag  which,  in 
point  of  time,  showed  the  stars  and  stripes  first  of  all 
over  our  army.  This  same  flag  is  now  kept  here,  and 
we  are  going  to  hoist  it  over  the  fort  at  Front  and  Ferry 
streets,  when  the  flotilla  moves  up  the  stream.  I  am 
to  be  attached  especially  to  Colonel  Pierre  van  Cort- 
landt's  regiment,  and,  when  not  under  General  Hand's 
orders,  as  I  often  may  be,  must  hold  myself  respon- 


82     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

sible  to  the  colonel.  Of  this  I  am  mighty  glad,  for  he 
knows  me,  and  what  I  want  to  accomplish.  He  is  the 
patriot  who  tore  up  his  royal  commission  and  foiled 
all  the  seductions  of  Tories  to  win  him  over.  He  is 
now  at  Wyoming  with  his  regiment,  but  I  report  to 
him  at  Tioga  Point.  His  rank  and  file  form  a  splen 
did  body  of  men. 

"  I  must  tell  you  about  a  fine  lad  here,  named  Her 
man  Clute,  who  is  but  twenty  years  old,  but  very 
intelligent,  strong  as  an  ox,  and  brave  as  a  lion.  He 
is  to  take  the  place  of  a  soldier  who  was  disabled  by 
an  accident  on  the  boats.  He  has  been  recommended 
to  my  care  by  his  mother.  If  we  do  not  hear  a  good 
account  of  him,  then  count  me  a  stupid  prophet." 

We  shall  find  out,  in  the  course  of  our  study, 
whether  Claes  Vrooman's  expectations  of  Herman 
were  extravagant.  Had  he  been  writing  to  an  older 
or  more  intimate  friend  he  would  probably  have 
added  that,  between  the  young  soldier  and  the  maid 
in  captivity,  Mary  Vrooman,  there  had  long  existed  a 
very  warm  and  a  very  tender  feeling.  They  had 
been  playmates  from  childhood.  Since  the  Cherry 
Valley  episode,  Herman  had  moped  much.  Now  he 
was  full  of  the  fire  of  hope.  In  him  was  the  "  love 
that  lightens  all  distress."  His  mother  grieved  to 
spare  her  only  son,  but  no  Spartan  ever  gave  her 
son  more  willingly.  It  was  a  red-letter  day  for  Her 
man  when  he  put  on  the  Continental  uniform. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

FROM  SCHENECTADY  TO  OTSEGO  LAKE 

IT  was  a  gay  day  inside  " Old  Dorp,"  as  the  pali 
saded  frontier  town  of  Schenectady  was  called, 
when,  on  that  bright  June  morning,  in  1779,  people 
from  town  and  country,  having  come  in  in  crowds  to 
seethe  departure  of  the  soldiers  and  the  fleets,  lined 
the  Binne-kill  and  the  river  sides.  It  was  very  cool 
weather.  Only  a  few  days  before,  the  hard  frost  had 
killed  many  of  the  blossoms  and  nipped  the  flowers 
and  early  vegetables,  but  there  were  enough  of  bloom 
on  the  trees  and  rich  greenery  springing  up,  since 
the  warmth  and  showers  together  had  come,  to 
obliterate  all  traces  of  Jack  Frost's  work.  Flags  — 
home-made  indeed,  but  with  the  true  ancestral 
Dutch  as  well  as»  American  colors,  red,  white,  and 
blue,  so  dear  to  the  eye  of  man  descended  from 
Holland's  heroes  —  hung  out  of  windows  in  the 
house  fronts  and  in  the  gable  ends  which  faced 
the  streets. 

Very  few  houses  in  the  place  were  two  storied,  most 
of  them  being  of  bricks  indeed,  but  having  but  one 
G  83 


84     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

story,  above  which  were  high,  sloping  tiled  roofs  and 
roomy  attics  on  the  second  floor.  All  were  shining 
clean,  with  curtains  and  flowers  at  the  windows,  and 
walls  and  mantelpieces  inside  well  decorated  with 
prints  and  paintings  from  Holland,  the  old  home  land 
of  liberty  set  behind  the  dikes,  as  well  as  with 
the  less  aesthetic  efforts  of  the  local  artists.  Many 
of  the  fireplaces  were  flanked  and  topped  with 
tiles,  telling  the  Scripture  story  rather  freely,  with 
here  and  there  a  gay  picture  in  enamel  of  Prince 
Maurice  or  Father  William,  or  some  later  stad- 
holder.  Delft  ware  in  Dorp  was  quite  as  common, 
at  least,  as  ballast  bricks  from  Holland  and  long 
pipes  from  Gouda.  Painted  on  the  outside  with 
gay  colors,  generally  red  and  blue,  each  house  had 
a  stoep,  or  porch  furnished  with  seats,  kept  well 
"  filed  "  or  scrubbed. 

The  two-leaved  or  double  door  of  each  house  was 
not  divided  up  and  down,  but  crosswise,  so  that,  when 
the  lower  part  was  shut,  all  kinds  of  enterprising  but 
unwelcome  creatures,  including  the  pigs  and  chickens 
by  day,  and  various  marauders,  on  two,  four  or  more 
legs,  at  night,  were  kept  out.  The  upper  half  of  the 
door,  on  which  was  usually  a  shining  brass  knocker, 
could  be  thrown  inward,  letting  in  air  and  light,  and 
keeping  the  house  well  ventilated.  Moreover,  on  the 
wooden  equator,  between  the  lintels,  Mynheer  or 
Mevrouw  could  rest  on  his  or  her  elbows.  This  he 
could  do  while  smoking  his  pipe  in  one  corner  of  his 


FROM  SCHENECTADY  TO  OTSEGO  LAKE      85 

mouth  and  chatting  with  a  sociable  neighbor  out  of 
the  other.  Or,  the  vrouw  could  stand  with  broom, 
and  hand  to  her  chin,  or  arms  akimbo,  while  digesting 
between  breakfast  and  dinner  the  gossip  of  yesterday, 
or,  in  late  afternoon,  the  morning  happenings. 

To-day,  however,  pretty  much  "  everybody  that  was 
anybody,"  not  at  the  riverside,  was  out  on  Church 
Street.  The  spaces,  not  only  on  the  stoeps  but  between 
them,  were  crowded  with  women,  children,  and  the  older 
men.  The  girls  had  bunches  of  flowers,  to  hand  to  the 
soldiers  to  stick  inside  their  big,  smooth-bore  muskets. 
The  small  boys,  who  had  on  cocked  hats,  with  enough 
red  and  blue  and  white  flannel  pinned  on  their  coats 
to  make  them  look  like  Continentals,  waved  flags, 
while  they  hurrahed  for  Generals  Washington,  Sul 
livan,  and  Clinton,  and  for  Colonels  Gansevoort  and 
Van  Cortlandt.  Some  shouted  to  the  men  in  the 
ranks  to  be  sure  to  bring  home  Brant  and  Butler  as 
prisoners,  to  dodge  the  bullets,  and  not  to  leave  their 
scalps  in  the  woods. 

So,  with  fife  and  drum  and  the  flags  flapping  in  the 
stiff  western  breeze,  the  men  of  the  various  commands 
assembled  at  Schenectady  to  convoy  the  stores  afloat, 
marched  up  the  valley  with  their  faces  set  toward 
Canajoharie.  Simultaneously  the  long  flotilla  of 
boats,  decked  with  hundreds  of  flags  and  pennons, 
and  some  of  them  loaded  perilously  near  the  gunwale, 
moved  up  stream  in  the  same  direction  and  disap 
peared. 


86     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

The  town  was  once  more  left  to  its  wonted  quiet 
ness  and  peace.  The  small  boy  grieved  over  the 
absence  of  the  soldiers,  and,  out  of  sheer  habit,  listened 
in  vain  for  the  morning  and  evening  gun  from  the 
camp,  answering  that  of  the  fort.  Chickens,  ducks, 
and  turkeys,  to  say  nothing  of  the  cows,  manifested 
visible  signs  of  rejoicing,  for  they  could  now  wander 
peacefully  up  and  down  the  streets,  in  which  were 
even  yet  some  suggestions  of  stumps  of  forest 
trees  long  ago  cut  down,  on  their  way  to  and 
from  the  pasture.  Certainly  the  geese  made  their 
usual  gansevoort,  or  goose  parade,  with  apparently 
greater  pride  and  regularity.  It  was  noted  by 
Granny  Shaddlegroen  that  the  leading  gander,  find 
ing  half  a  loaf  of  hard,  stale  bread,  actually  carried 
it  all  the  way  from  Cross  to  Martyrs  Street,  and 
there,  dipping  it  in  the  runnel  of  water,  so  soaked 
it  soft  that  the  gander's  whole  harem  enjoyed  the 
feast  with  screams  of  delight.  Surely  this  was  a 
good  omen. 

What  happened  to  himself  and  comrades,  and  how 
a  soldier's  life  looks  to  the  youth  of  twenty,  Herman 
Clute,  who  had  been  suddenly  called  to  be  a  soldier, 
may  be  learned  from  a  letter  which  he  wrote  to  his 
mother  from  the  great  camp  at  Tioga  Point,  where 
five  thousand  Continental  soldiers,  chiefly  from  the 
six  states  of  Massachusetts,  New  York,  New  Hamp 
shire,  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey,  and  Virginia,  were 
gathered  together  under  the  forest  trees  in  that  won- 


FROM  SCHENECTADY  TO  OTSEGO  LAKE      87 

derful  peninsula  formed  by  the  twin  branches  of  the 
Susquehanna. 

There,  just  like  two  lovers  that  nearly  come 
together,  quarrel,  part,  and  make  up  again,  the 
two  streams  first  approach  and  then  separate,  only 
to  unite  again  farther  on.  Where  on  the  map  they 
seem  about  to  touch,  but  do  not,  Fort  Sullivan,  of 
which  we  shall  hear  more,  was  built. 

"FORT  SULLIVAN,  TIOGA  POINT,  PA., 
"August  23,  1779. 

"  DEAR  MOTHER  :  Would  you  like  to  know  what 
the  life  of  a  soldier  on  a  campaign  is  like  ?  Well, 
here  I  am,  away  off  hundreds  of  miles  from  home 
in  the  woods  of  Pennsylvania,  but  well  and  hearty, 
though  I  declare  I  never  worked  so  hard  in  my  life. 
After  father  had  been  drowned  at  Little  Falls,  and  I 
as  the  oldest  son  had  to  do  the  work  of  the  house, 
I  used  to  think  life  was  very  hard.  Between  chop 
ping  wood,  looking  after  the  horses,  and  taking  the 
cows  to  drink  and  to  pasture,  with  all  my  other 
chores,  I  was  driven  pretty  hard.  But  I  tell  you 
that  to  carry  a  heavy  gun,  big  powder-horn  full 
to  the  nozzle,  bullet  bag  with  a  pound  or  two 
of  lead,  an  axe  at  my  belt  and  a  knapsack 
weighing  forty  pounds  with  a  blanket  on  top, 
marching  through  the  woods  and  along  the  river, 
where  there  are  no  roads,  except  what  the  Indians 
tramped  over,  is  a  good  deal  harder  than  farming. 


88     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

For  ease,  I  should  like  to  be  back  among  the 
cows. 

"  The  first  few  days  I  thought  I  could  not  stand  it, 
but  now  I  am  rather  used  to  it.  I  must  tell  you  my 
first  experiences,  not  of  sleeping  out  of  doors  —  for  I 
have  done  that  often  —  but  of  sleeping  in  the  rain. 
The  mosquitoes  and  wood  flies  were  very  lively  the 
first  two  days,  and  the  men  that  smoked  seemed  to 
have  the  easier  time.  Some  of  the  tough  and  skinny 
fellows  seemed  to  suffer  the  most. 

"  The  first  night,  when  I  lay  down,  with  my  knap 
sack  for  a  pillow,  and  fitted  my  shoulders  snugly 
between  two  roots  of  a  tree,  I  was  quickly  asleep. 
Something  seemed  to  be  tickling  my  face,  and  I 
thought  sister  Cartie  was  teasing  me  with  a  spear 
of  wheat.  By  and  by  I  dreamed  that  flies  were 
moving  over  my  face,  and  I  brushed  them  away. 
This  was  of  no  use,  for  they  kept  coming  on  in 
swarms,  I  thought.  When  I  took  both  hands  to 
drive  them  away,  I  woke  up  and  found  my  hands 
wet.  Then  I  realized  that  it  was  raining.  However, 
I  didn't  move,  but  let  the  rain  fall  until  it  began  to 
pour  pretty  lively.  I  could  feel  the  water  soaking 
into  my  clothes,  inch  by  inch,  as  I  lay  on  the 
ground. 

"  In  the  morning  we  were  a  very  bedraggled  set, 
as  you  might  imagine ;  but  wood  is  plenty  here.  In 
spite  of  the  rain,  we  soon  had  roaring  fires,  dried 
ourselves  off  somewhat,  and  toasted  slices  of  bacon 


FROM  SCHENECTADY  TO  OTSEGO  LAKE      89 

on  our  ramrods.  I  thought  that  the  dry  bread  in 
my  haversack  never  tasted  better. 

"  At  Canajoharie,  we  had  to  take  off  our  coats  and 
help  unload  the  boats,  and  hoist  them  up  on  the  big 
wagons  that  were  here  all  ready  to  receive  us.  Such 
pushing  and  pulling  as  we  had,  I  can  hardly  tell  you ! 
One  Connecticut  man  fell  dead  at  the  work.  It  is 
said  that  he  broke  a  blood  vessel.  Following  the 
wagons,  each  drawn  by  four  yoke  of  oxen,  we 
marched  over  the  hills.  When  we  reached  Lake 
Otsego,  I  thought  I  had  never  seen  a  more  lovely 
sheet  of  water.  Many  of  the  trees  and  bushes,  in 
their  fresh  green  of  spring  or  early  summer,  dip 
over  into  the  water. 

"  We  have  a  fine  place  for  camp  upon  the  side  of 
the  hill,  well  cleared  and  drained,  and  the  tents  are 
set  in  regular  rows.  We  can  get  all  the  fish  and 
venison  we  want  here,  and  we  have  plenty  of  beef 
also,  for  fifty  wagons  are  steadily  going  between 
Canajoharie  and  the  lake,  and  all  the  men  seem  in 
good  spirits.  I  have  been  over  to  see  the  other 
regiments,  especially  that  from  Massachusetts  called 
after  Colonel  Alden,  who  was  killed  last  year  at 
Cherry  Valley. 

"  I  have  just  heard  that  a  spy  from  Butler's  rangers 
has  been  seized  and  hanged,  down  at  the  river.  He 
was  one  of  a  party  of  two  Tories  and  nine  Indians, 
such  as  are  still  roaming  the  country,  to  kill,  burn, 
and  destroy.  When  I  take  my  place  on  the  watch 


9O     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

at  night,  I  feel  that  there  is  danger  and  I  must  keep 
a  sharp  lookout.  Only  the  other  day  a  sentinel  was 
fired  on  by  Indians  in  ambush.  One  night  I  caught 
the  gleam  of  moonbeams  on  gun  barrels,  and  was 
pretty  sure  that  two  men  were  moving  around  the 
bushes.  I  fired,  but  whether  any  damage  was  done 
them  I  do  not  know ;  but  a  search  afterwards 
showed  that  I  was  not  mistaken,  for  men  had 
been  lying  down  there,  and  the  officer  commended 
me. 

"  Of  course  you  will  want  to  know  what  we  get  to 
eat.  While  at  Otsego  Lake  we  had  good  bread,  for 
an  oven  was  built  in  the  camp.  With  fresh  beef  just 
from  the  hoof,  and  occasionally  green  stuff,  we  fare 
well.  A  good  deal  goes  on  in  the  way  of  excitement. 
One  day  thirty  friendly  Oneida  Indians  came  in,  led 
by  a  chief  named  Hanyari,  who  will  be  our  guides 
into  the  Seneca  country.  I  have  learned  to  like 
Hanyari  very  much.  In  the  party  is  a  wonderful  old 
fellow,  who  saved  Domine  Kirkland  from  starvation 
by  collecting  ginseng  plant  in  the  woods,  and,  run 
ning  to  Albany,  sold  it  and  brought  back  supplies. 
He  seems  to  know  every  plant  in  the  forest.  When 
Vrooman  showed  him  a  picture  of  the  glen  flower 
which  the  Philadelphia  lady  desires,  he  said  at  once 
that  he  had  seen  it  growing  at  the  head  of  Cayuga 
Lake. 

"  One  white  man  here,  whose  house  was  burnt  and 
family  all  slain  by  the  savages,  who  has  been  the 


FROM  SCHENECTADY  TO  OTSEGO  LAKE      9 1 

whole  length  of  the  Susquehanna  and  to  Baltimore, 
will  be  our  river  pilot.  He  tells  us  about  the  Scotch 
Tories  of  a  settlement  in  this  region,  who  were  such 
hidebound  loyalists  that  they  defied  old  customs. 

"  Instead  of  their  observing  the  law  of  the  road  and 
turning  to  the  right,  as  our  Dutch  law  directs,  they 
always  moved  to  the  left.  They  thus  often  got  into 
quarrels  with  their  white  neighbors,  who  would  turn 
to  the  right.  They  seem  to  enjoy  keeping  up  the 
old  feuds  and  clan  fights  of  Scotland.  These  are 
all  scattered  now,  and  most  of  them  are  among 
the  Senecas,  helping  the  savages  on  their  maize 
farms. 

"  On  another  day,  an  Indian  came  in  from  Fort 
Schuyler  and  gave  the  news  that  fourteen  hundred 
Indians  and  Tories,  under  Brant,  are  on  their  way 
to  intercept  or  ambuscade  us,  when  we  attempt 
to  march  from  Otsego  to  Tioga  Point.  Failing 
on  this,  we  fear  they  may  slip  off  down  toward 
the  Delaware  region,  and  ravage  the  settlements 
there. 

"  On  one  Sunday,  the  brigade  chaplain,  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Gano,  preached  a  good  sermon  from  Job  xxii. 
21.  I  have  heard  him  several  times,  and-  like 
him. 

"  But  even  more  solemn,  certainly  more  awe- 
inspiring,  than  worship  under  the  trees,  is  the  pun 
ishment  given  to  deserters.  The  army  discipline  is 
very  severe.  On  one  day,  three  deserters  were 


92     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

brought  into  camp  and  immediately  tied  up  and 
whipped.  One  of  them  received  five  hundred  lashes, 
because  he  had  some  weeks  ago  been  sentenced  to 
three  hundred  stripes,  but  was  forgiven  by  the 
colonel.  Then,  instead  of  being  a  better  soldier, 
he  deserted  again ;  so  what  he  got  was  back  pay. 
A  few  days  later,  two  more  men,  one  of  them  a 
sergeant,  were  whipped,  one  hundred  lashes  each. 
Three  more  were  sentenced  to  be  shot  to  death,  — 
one  a  Massachusetts,  another  a  New  York,  and  the 
third  a  Pennsylvania  man.  Riding  the  wooden 
horse  —  made  by  chopping  a  log  into  triangular 
shape,  with  a  sharp  edge  —  and  running  the  gantlet 
are  common  punishments. 

"  Oh,  it  was  an  awful  sight,  I  tell  you,  to  see  three 
wretched  men  sitting  on  their  coffins,  the  roughest 
sort  you  can  imagine,  with  the  lids  on,  and  their  fresh- 
dug  graves  just  before  them  ;  but  General  Clinton 
thought  that  two  should  be  reprieved,  and  they  were ; 
but  the  other  was  brought  out  and,  before  the  whole 
brigade,  shot.  Nine  men  fired,  but  only  eight  guns 
were  loaded.  These  were  changed  round,  before 
being  handed  to  the  firing  party,  so  that  no  man 
could  say  or  know  or  feel  that  his  bullet  did  the 
work.  It  was  the  law,  not  his  comrades,  that  killed 
the  man. 

"  Except  these  dark  things,  everything  else  is 
fine,  and  I  enjoy  army  life.  One  day  a  courier 
brought  in  tidings  of  General  Wayne's  capture 


FROM  SCHENECTADY  TO  OTSEGO  LAKE      93 

of  Stony  Point,  but  most  of  the  other  messengers 
told  us  of  farmers  shot  in  the  fields,  or  people 
on  pleasure  parties  ambuscaded.  The  surmise 
about  Brant  was  well  founded.  He  found  our 
forces  too  strong,  and  so  he  slipped  away  into  the 
Delaware  and  Walkill  valleys.  We  have  heard 
of  the  Minisink  massacre,  in  which  fifty  men  were 
slaughtered. 

"  On  the  whole,  it  was  a  very  pleasant  month,  that 
one  of  July,  and  I  shall  always  remember  it.  We 
had  plenty  of  fruit,  apples,  vegetables,  and  a  fine 
herd  of  fat  cattle,  from  Kingston,  have  kept  us  in 
good  condition.  There  is  a  broad  trail  leading 
from  that  old  town,  Kingston,  which  grandmother 
still  calls  'Wiltwyck,'  to  Otsego,  and  on  westward 
to  Niagara.  On  August  /th,  we  had  a  parade  in 
which  all  the  light  infantry  and  the  rifle  corps 
showed  at  their  best.  Colonel  William  Butler  is 
to  command  us,  and  we  have  word  that  General 
Sullivan,  after  long  delays  at  Wyoming,  which  were 
no  fault  of  his,  has  at  last  been  able  to  get  to  Tioga 
Point. 

"  There  are  plenty  of  rattlesnakes  in  this  region,  and 
we  have  killed  a  great  many.  What  a  pity  that  old 
Clausha  Decatur,  of  Frog  Alley  in  Dort,  is  not  here. 
He  might  get  oil  enough  out  of  them  to  cure  his 
rheumatism.  They  say  their  flesh  is  good  to  eat  and 
that  the  taste  is  very  pleasant.  One  escaped  prisoner 
from  the  Senecas,  who  joined  our  camp  at  Unadilla, 


94     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

was  sixteen  days  in  the  woods,  and  had  little  else  but 
rattlesnake  meat  to  live  on.  One  day  last  week, 
while  rambling  in  the  woods,  I  caught  hold  of  the 
edge  of  a  high  rock  to  lift  myself  up  with  my  hands, 
when  just  as  my  eyes  were  level  with  the  top,  I  saw 
three  big  ones,  just  ready  to  spring  at  me.  How  I 
dropped  and  ran !  I  shall  never  forget  their  glit 
tering,  lidless  eyes  and  dripping  fangs.  Ugh !  I 
shudder  as  I  think  of  it. 

"  Do  you  want  to  know  how  our  boats  got  started, 
and  are  now  floating  in  plenty  of  water  in  the  Sus- 
quehanna  River,  where  only  a  few  days  before  one 
would  hardly  have  wet  his  knees  in  walking  across 
it?  Let  me  tell  you.  On  June  21  st,  Colonel  William 
Butler  ordered  out  a  party  made  up  of  skilful  axemen, 
and  they  built  a  dam  with  a  sluice  and  gateway  clear 
across  the  southern  end  of  the  lake.  Making  it 
water-tight,  they  closed  it  up.  What  with  the  natural 
flow  of  water  into  Schuyler  and  Otsego  lakes, 
and  the  heavy  rains  (for  we  had  a  terrible  storm 
on  the  nth  of  July),  the  water  in  the  lake  rose, 
it  seemed  to  me,  about  two  feet,  though  others  say 
only  one. 

"  Indeed,  when  it  comes  to  numbers,  figures,  size, 
or  distance,  I  have  learned  not  to  believe  everything 
I  hear  in  camp,  for  none  of  the  trails  have  been 
measured,  and,  especially  on  days  when  the  men  have 
not  much  to  do,  all  kinds  of  stories  start.  Sometimes 
they  try  to  scare  me,  because,  being  a  young  and 


FROM    SCHENECTADY    TO    OTSEGO    LAKE  95 

green  soldier,  they  consider  me  a  good  '  marine.'  I 
miss  also  my  '  hill  clock.'  At  home,  for  afternoon 
time,  I  need  only  look  eastward  to  the  Helderberg 
range,  to  see  in  what  notch  the  sun  was,  and,  when  it 
seemed  to  be  rolling  down  hill  like  a  ball,  I  knew  how 
late  it  must  be ;  but  here,  I  know  only  the  points  of 
the  compass. 

"  Our  chaplain,  Gano,  is  a  clever  and  jolly  fellow,  who 
has  helped  us  to  bear  cheerfully  the  long  delay 
here.  Being  on  guard  near  the  general's  tent,  on 
Friday,  August  6th,  I  heard  the  following  conversa 
tion  :  — 

"  '  Chaplain,'  said  the  general,  '  you  will  have  your 
last  preaching  service  here  day  after  to-morrow.' 

"  '  Ah,  indeed !  Are  we  to  march  soon  ?  Before 
another  Sunday  ? ' 

"  '  Yes,  but  I  do  not  want  the  men  to  know  it.' 

" '  Nor  shall  I  tell  them ;  but,  general,  am  I  at 
liberty  to  preach  from  any  text  I  choose  ? ' 

" '  Certainly,  chaplain.' 

" '  And  you  will  not,  in  any  event,  tax  me  with 
violation  of  confidence  ? ' 

"'No!  only  stick  to  your  Bible,  and  I'll  give  the 
official  orders.' 

"  '  All  right,  general.' 

"  The  chaplain,  recognizing  me,  warned  me  not  to 
disclose  anything  I  overheard,  and  I  promised  not  to ; 
but  I  noticed  a  twinkle  in  his  eye.  So  on  Sunday, 
August  8th,  he  preached  to  the  whole  brigade, 


96     THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

from    the    text,    '  Being    ready    to    depart    on    the 
morrow.' 

"  The  faces  of  our  men  lightened,  but  the  general's 
face  wore  a  frown.  He  was  distinctly  vexed  ;  but  the 
parson  made  application  to  our  souls,  rather  than  our 
bodies,  and,  as  he  proceeded,  General  Clinton  looked 
pleased.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  services,  the  com 
mander  rose  and  announced  the  order  of  march  on 
Monday  morning." 


CHAPTER  IX 

INTO  QUEEN  ESTHER'S  COUNTRY 

HERMAN  CLUTE'S  letter,  in  different-colored 
ink  and  another  sort  of  paper,  showing  the 
interruptions  of  a  private  soldier,  continues  as 
follows :  — 

"  All  the  boats  gathered  in  line,  loaded,  and  ready 
to  proceed  down  the  river,  were  moved  to  the  banks 
of  the  outlet.  On  Sunday,  at  six  o'clock  P.M.,  the 
axemen  chopped  away  the  gate,  and  all  night  long 
the  water  poured  out  through  the  sluice  into  the 
river.  You  can  imagine  how  steadily  this  supplied 
a  channel  for  us,  for  Otsego  is  eight  miles  long  and 
Schuyler  Lake  empties  into  it.  On  Monday,  after 
breakfast,  I  was  one  of  the  lucky  fellows  who  were 
ordered  into  the  boats.  The  current  was  so  swift 
that  it  reminded  me  of  sliding  down  hill.  Besides 
the  ammunition,  provisions,  and  stores,  we  have  two 
pieces  of  cannon  belonging  to  Colonel  Dubois's 
regiment. 

"We  made  thirty  miles  by  water  that  day,  and 
twenty-five  miles  the  next.  Of  course  the  men  who 
H  97 


98 

marched  by  shore  did  not  have  to  go  the  same  dis 
tance  we  did,  for  the  river  is  very  winding  and  they 
could  march  in  nearly  a  straight  line,  though  the 
riflemen  kept  near  the  bank,  to  guard  against  sur 
prises  by  Indians,  whose  tracks  we  found  in  many 
places. 

"  The  savages  were  mightily  scared  at  seeing  the 
river  rise  in  summer,  and  thought  the  Great  Spirit 
was  angry.  In  one  place,  they  painted  a  rough  pic 
ture  of  the  river  overflowing  on  the  rocks,  showing  a 
cornfield  flooded.  At  Unadilla,  besides  meeting  the 
rattlesnake  eater  I  have  spoken  of,  we  came  to  the 
place  where  General  Herkimer  had  held  a  council 
with  Brant  and  the  Indians.  He  urged  them  not  to 
take  up  arms  against  our  side,  but  to  let  us  settle  our 
family  quarrel  with  the  British  between  ourselves. 
It  seemed  to  be  too  much  for  the  Indian  intellect  to 
be  able  to  decide  between  white  men,  as  to  the  right 
and  wrong  of  British  and  American  quarrels  ;  and 
when  the  Tories'  presents  of  rum,  hatchets,  powder, 
balls,  beads, — and  especially  rum,  —  came,  they  de 
cided  to  side  with  King  George.  The  Tories  persuaded 
them  to  believe  they  were  thus  keeping  '  the  Cove 
nant  of  Corlaer,'  and  that  '  the  silver  chain '  was  well 
brightened ;  but  they  will  have  to  suffer  for  their 
weakness,  just  as  the  Onondagas  have  already  been 
ruined  and  driven  from  their  desolated  farms  and 
burnt  homes  by  Colonel  Van  Schaick. 

"  After  four  days  of  boat  service,  I  took  my  turn 


INTO  QUEEN  ESTHER'S  COUNTRY         99 

marching  on  land  with  the  regiment.  On  Sunday 
we  rested,  and  Chaplain  Gano  gave  us  another  good 
sermon.  I  attended  a  soldier's  funeral  —  the  first  ever 
I  saw.  This  man,  of  the  Fourth  Pennsylvania  Regi 
ment,  had  died  of  putrid  fever.  The  ceremonies  were 
very  solemn,  and  three  volleys  were  fired  over  the 
grave.  At  one  place,  we  came  to  an  Indian  town  where 
there  had  been  about  sixty  houses,  with  one  British 
family  among  them.  Only  the  cellars  and  walls,  fruit 
trees  and  grain  fields  remained.  From  this  time  forth 
our  men  burned  all  the  Indian  villages,  one  that  we 
passed  belonging  to  the  Tuscaroras.  We  were  not 
allowed  to  stop  and  eat  any  of  the  ripe  apples,  or 
shoot  any  game,  for  General  Sullivan  had  sent  word 
to  hasten  our  march.  In  one  place,  called  Ingaren, 
we  found  several  sides  of  tanned  leather  in  a  vat, 
and  a  dead  white  man,  probably  a  prisoner,  under  a 
tree  blown  down  by  the  wind.  There  was  a  Scotch 
bonnet  near  him. 

"  My  friend,  Claes  Vrooman,  who  knows  all  the 
Indian  signs,  pointed  out,  on  a  ledge  of  rocks  by  the 
river,  the  colored  picture  of  a  boat  on  high  water. 
This  was  a  notice  given  by  Indian  spies,  who,  some 
days  before,  had  seen  our  flotilla  issue  from  the 
woods,  and  had  run  ahead,  making  these  pictures  all 
along,  thus  informing  his  fellow-savages  as  to  the 
manner  of  our  coming.  At  another  place,  Mr.  Vroo 
man  showed  me  a  war  post,  which  was  all  smeared 
with  paint  and  cut  in  several  lines,  up  and  down 


IOO         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

and  crosswise,  with  a  hatchet.  This,  Vrooman  said, 
would  tell  just  how  many  scalps,  and  also  how  many 
prisoners,  the  party  had  taken.  In  such  a  way,  just 
as  we  write  letters,  or  our  officers  send  despatches, 
the  different  Iroquois  parties  communicate  with  each 
other.  All  along  the  march,  the  Indians  have  had 
spies  on  the  hilltops.  As  we  are  to  make  our  way 
mostly  in  valleys  until  we  get  to  the  lake  country, 
all  our  movements  will  be  well  known  before  we 
arrive.  By  sending  swift  runners  ahead,  they  have 
kept  the  Senecas  and  other  savages  well  informed 
about  our  numbers  and  purpose.  I  suppose,  by  this 
time,  Brant  has  returned  from  Minisink  and  joined 
forces  with  Butler. 

"After  burning  a  good  many  houses  on  the  i8th, 
two  scouts  from  General  Poor's  New  Hampshire  bri 
gade  came  in  to  tell  us  that  both  camps,  Clinton's 
and  Poor's,  would  soon  be  within  eight  miles  of  each 
other.  The  next  day  we  met  at  nine  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  and  both  armies  gave  three  cheers  and  wel 
comed  each  other.  We  marched  together  to  a  place 
called  Owego,  where  was  a  big  Indian  settlement, 
with  plenty  of  fine  land  and  crops  growing.  Vroo 
man,  who  talked  with  Lieutenant  McKendry,  the 
quartermaster  of  Alden's  Sixth  Massachusetts  Regi 
ment,  says  that  this  was  the  town  to  which  Sergeant 
Hunter  was  taken  from  near  Cherry  Valley,  last 
November,  and  Vrooman  thinks  that  possibly  his  sis 
ter  might  have  been  here  too,  though  he  rather  cher- 


INTO    QUEEN    ESTHER  S    COUNTRY  IOI 

ishes  the  idea  that  she  is  up  in  the  Cayuga  Lake 
region. 

"  Nearly  every  morning  this  week  we  have  waked 
up  in  a  fog  and  had  to  march  through  the  haze, 
although  the  sky  was  clear.  Vrooman  says  that  all 
the  streams  flowing  south  make  fog,  but  those  whose 
waters  go  northward  do  not.  Is  it  not  strange  ? 

"  How  we  did  enjoy  burning  the  big  bark  houses 
here !  Think  of  over  fifty  dwellings,  some  of  them 
sixty  feet  long  and  divided  into  rooms  with  a  fireplace 
in  each  !  Whew !  what  a  blaze,  and  how  the  dry  bark 
did  crackle !  We  did  not  march  on  the  morrow, 
for  it  rained  too  hard,  but  on  the  next  day  we  passed 
more  fine  maize  land  and  a  place  where  some  Indians 
had  burned  a  white  prisoner  to  death.  A  deer  ran  right 
through  our  camp,  but  he  saved  his  venison  by  being 
too  swift  for  us.  In  spite  of  many  rapids  and  rough 
places  which  turned  the  boats  around  in  every  direc 
tion,  our  watermen  were  lucky ;  but,  in  one  place,  in 
deep  water  we  lost  a  boat,  which  had  on  board  three 
barrels  of  powder  and  fourteen  boxes  of  cartridges, 
besides  one  man  drowned.  Now,  about  this  episode, 
I  must  tell  you  in  detail,  for  it  shows  what  curious 
beliefs  some  folks  have. 

"  There  were  five  men  in  charge  of  the  boat,  but 
the  current  had  made  it  unmanageable,  and  it  was 
overturned.  Now,  if  it  had  been  Cayuga  Lake,  about 
which  the  Indians  tell,  we  should  not  have  expected 
to  see  the  body  float  again,  for  in  this  lake,  which  we 


IO2          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

are  yet  to  see,  the  water  is  so  deep  and  so  cold  that 
it  is  almost  never  that  the  corpse  of  an  Indian  man 
or  woman  drowned  in  its  waters  comes  to  the  sur 
face  again.  The  Indians  do  not  expect  to  see  their 
friends  who  have  sunk,  but  they  begin  mourning 
for  them  at  once,  wailing  as  for  those  who  have 
not  only  died  but  disappeared  even  from  the  solid 
earth. 

"  The  reason  of  this  is  that  down  in  the  unsounded 
depths,  where  it  is  too  cold  even  for  fish  to  live,  in 
the  icy  caves  of  the  dead  dwells  the  spirit  of  a  malig 
nant  squaw,  who  is  eager  to  have  and  to  hold  the 
bodies  of  men,  whom  she  hates.  Her  blind  rage, 
however,  does  not  discriminate,  and  her  grip  is  relent 
less  upon  all  that  come  to  her.  After  hearing  of 
Queen  Esther,  I  can  believe  in  such  a  being. 

"  When  a  person  drowns,  the  Senecas  have  no  rites 
or  incantations  by  which  they  hope  to  appease  the 
malignity  of  the  queen  of  the  ice ;  but  with  our  me.n  it 
was  different.  They  thought  that  the  body  of  the 
drowned  man  deserved  honorable  burial,  and  so  they 
attempted,  after  their  own  way,  to  make  the  corpse 
float,  and  this  was  the  way  they  did  it.  From  one  of 
the  other  boats  they  borrowed  a  loaf  of  bread, — the 
staler  and  drier  the  better,  —  and  into  this  bread  they 
cut  a  tube-like  hole  from  the  top  to  the  centre.  The 
next  thing  was  to  get  some  quicksilver  to  put  inside 
the  bread.  The  idea  was  that  the  loaf  of  bread  set 
floating  on  the  water  would,  because  of  the  quicksil- 


INTO  QUEEN  ESTHER'S  COUNTRY        IO3 

ver  in  it,  and  its  subtle  relation  to  the  human  interior 
organs,  especially  the  bladder,  bring  the  corpse  to 
the  surface. 

"But  how  to  get  the  white  quicksilver — -this  was 
the  question.  There  was  none  in  any  of  the  military 
stores,  or  in  any  one's  private  possession,  but,  appeal 
ing  to  the  surgeon,  who  was  willing  to  humor  the  men, 
he  found  that  he  had  an  unusually  large  amount  of 
the  red  precipitate,  or  oxide  of  mercury.  Rigging  up 
a  rude  alembic,  made  of  bottles  and  a  bit  of  glass  tube, 
over  the  camp-fire,  and  carefully  manipulating  it,  a 
globule  of  mercury  as  big  as  a  large  pea  was  obtained. 
This  was  duly  set  into  the  loaf  of  bread,  which  was 
properly  plugged  up  with  a  part  of  the  material  cut 
from  the  top  crust. 

"  Then  the  man  who  most  fervently  believed  in  the 
prescription  of  literally  raising  the  dead,  carefully 
launched  the  dry  loaf  some  thirty  feet  above  the 
place  where  the  man  fell  overboard.  The  current 
bore  the  novel  burden  upon  its  bosom,  first  slowly, 
then  swiftly,  until  down  near  the  place  of  the  acci 
dent,  when  it  began  to  move  near  the  shore  and  then 
around  in  the  curve  of  the  land,  but,  instead  of  pass 
ing  on,  out  and  over  into  the  stronger  channel,  it 
eddied  entirely  round,  making  a  circle  nearly  six  feet 
in  diameter.  At  this  the  eyes  of  the  expectant  man 
danced  with  delight.  He  was  a  cousin  of  the  de 
ceased,  and  would  rather  have  been  shot  in  battle 
than  face  the  man's  parents,  and  especially  his  grand- 


IO4         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

mother,  without  having  tried  the  mystic  mercury  and 
the  staff  of  life. 

"All  the  other  spectators  kept  quiet,  some  half 
believing  in  the  efficacy  of  the  trial.  The  others,  not 
wishing  to  hurt  the  man's  feelings,  refrained  from 
jeers  or  laughter.  Soon,  to  the  astonishment  of  all, 
something  appeared  on  the  surface  of  the  water, 
and  in  a  moment  it  was  recognized  as  a  human  foot, 
with  some  grass  and  leaves  with  it.  In  but  a  few 
seconds  more,  the  water  became  clearer  and  the 
body  could  be  seen,  and  was  soon  brought  to  the 
shore  by  two  men  already  waiting  with  boat-hooks. 

"  By  this  time  the  loaf  of  bread  had  become  so 
soaked  that  it  had  sunk.  Of  course  the  man's  faith 
in  the  traditional  method  of  raising  a  drowned  man 
from  a  watery  to  a  dry  grave  was,  in  his  own  eyes, 
amply  vindicated.  Out  of  respect  for  his  feelings, 
criticism,  comment,  and  challenge  of  superstition 
were  postponed.  There  in  the  forest  a  grave  was 
dug,  a  volley  fired.  Then,  brushwood  and  timber, 
heaped  up  and  fired,  covered  from  desecration  and 
gave  to  oblivion  the  unfortunate  boatman. 

"  Sunday,  the  22d,  was  a  bright  day  for  us,  for  at 
nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  we  arrived  at  General 
Hand's  camp.  The  light  infantry,  all  splendid  fel 
lows  and  mostly  Pennsylvanians,  came  out  to  meet 
us  with  cheers,  while  thirteen  cannon  made  the  hills 
and  forest  ring  with  echoes,  such  as  I  have  never 
heard  before.  We  marched  a  mile  further,  and 


INTO  QUEEN  ESTHER'S  COUNTRY        IO5 

arrived  at  Tioga  Point.  Sullivan's  main  body  lies 
in  camp  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  the  east  being 
apparently  all  mountains.  This  new  river  flows  out 
of  the  country  of  the  Senecas,  and  we  shall  proceed 
up  its  valley.  I  can  tell  you  that  I  was  interested  in 
seeing  the  stream  which  for  ages  had  floated  the 
canoes  of  the  biggest  of  the  Iroquois  tribes.  They 
certainly  do  make  pretty  craft.  Being  of  birch  bark, 
they  are  much  handsomer  and  lighter,  but  also  more 
fragile  than  our  clumsy  boats,  but  both  are  alike  in 
having  no  iron  nails  in  them,  for  even  our  big  flat 
boats  are  held  together  with  pins  of  wood. 

"  By  noontime  we  were  safely  encamped  in  a  fine, 
large  Indian  field.  You  would  be  surprised  to  see 
how  many  hundred  acres  the  redmen  long  ago 
cleared  at  this  place,  first  by  cutting  off  the  bark  of 
the  trees  (using  the  best  for  making  houses  and 
canoes)  and  thus  deadening  them.  After  a  year 
or  two,  they  burn  the  timber  and  underbrush,  until, 
after  a  decade  or  so,  many  of  the  fields  look  as  smooth 
and  beautiful  as  any  on  the  flats  near  Schenectady 
or  even  in  the  Bowery. 

"All  the  field  officers  of  our  brigade  dined  with' 
General  Sullivan  ;  but  the  next  day  we  had  a  sad 
accident  when  Captain  Kimble,  in  Colonel  Cilley's 
regiment,  was  killed  by  a  soldier's  careless  handling 
of  his  musket. 

"  Though  I  have  often  seen  soldiers  march  through 
Schenectady,  and  even  a  brigade  at  a  time,  yet  this 


IO6    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

is  the  biggest  army  I  have  yet  looked  upon,  for 
there  are  nearly  five  thousand  men,  including  three 
hundred  boatmen,  who  came  with  us  and  with  Sulli 
van  up  from  Wyoming.  There  are  thirty  or  forty 
women  in  the  camp,  —  soldiers',  sutlers',  or  drovers' 
wives,  though  two  or  three  are  rescued  captives,  —  * 
and  there  are  five  or  six  children. 

"  I  must  tell  you  an  incident  about  one  of  these 
men  accustomed  to  the  rifle  from  childhood,  showing 
also  what  sure  marksmen  Pennsylvania  buck-shooters 
are.  A  boy  and  girl,  out  with  their  father  tending 
the  cows,  rambled  in  the  woods  one  day  and  found 
what  they  thought  to  be  a  nest  of  kittens.  The  boy 
put  the  pretty  little  things  in  his  sister's  apron  to 
carry  back  to  show  their  parents.  He  himself  was 
carrying  one  on  his  shoulder  and  petting  it,  when 
the  mother  wildcat,  coming  back,  saw  herself  robbed, 
and  in  a  moment  seemed  infuriated.  She  sprang  on 
the  boy's  head,  seized  her  cub  in  her  mouth,  and 
appeared  just  about  ready  to  claw  the  boy's  eyes  out, 
when  fortunately  the  father,  who  had  seen  the  whole 
affair,  coolly  took  aim  and  sent  a  ball  just  through 
the  animal's  eyes.  The  boy  was  only  scratched  in  a 
few  places,  and  the  girl  brought  her  kittens  home. 
The  family  has  a  small  menagerie  of  wild  creatures, 
including  a  hedgehog,  a  white  owl,  an  eagle,  and  two 
bears'  cubs. 

"  We  have  plenty  of  good  bread  here,  baked  in  the 
ovens  which  have  been  set  up  by  the  assistants  of  Mr. 


INTO  QUEEN  ESTHER'S  COUNTRY        IO/ 

Ludwig,  the  Philadelphia  baker-general.  Whether 
'salt-raised'  or  'milk  emptin's,'  or  'yeast  riz,'  I  can 
not  say ;  but  it  is  light  and  sweet. 

"  The  branches  of  the  Susquehanna  here  come  very 
close  together,  about  a  half  a  mile  above  the  point 
where  they  unite,  and  it  is  on  the  narrow  neck  of  the 
peninsula  that  Fort  Sullivan  has  been  built.  It  is 
shaped  like  a  diamond,  with  points  touching  the  river, 
a  block  house  being  at  each  of  the  points.  On  the 
great  flat,  at  the  wedge  of  land  between  the  rivers, 
and  shaped  like  an  arrow-head,  are  camped  the  sol 
diers  of  the  four  brigades,  with  the  artillery  and  the 
riflemen.  The  Six  Nations  called  this  place,  where 
the  fort  stands,  the  'Southern  Door  of  the  Long 
House,'  for  here  all  the  trails  centred,  and  their 
representative,  a  Seneca  chief,  the  '  Guardian  of  the 
Door,'  always  dwelt  here. 

"  Queen  Esther,  the  granddaughter  of  Madame 
Montour,  whose  father  was  Count  Frontenac,  ruled 
this  part  of  the  country  and  had  hundreds  of  acres 
southwest  of  the  fort  covered  with  cornfields.  Of 
course  you  have  heard  of  her.  She  is  supposed  to 
be  the  natural  great-granddaughter  of  Count  Fron 
tenac,  whose  men  burned  our  town  of  Schenectady 
in  1690,  when  our  own  grandfather  was  shot  and 
scalped.  Queen  Esther  had  so  fine  a  house  at  the 
village  of  Sheshequin  that  our  Pennsylvania  boys 
always  speak  of  it  as  a  palace,  and  her  husband 
was  a  famous  chief  named  Echobund.  She  had  only 


IO8          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

one  son,  and  he  was  killed  in  a  battle  the  day  before 
the  fall  of  Wyoming,  in  one  of  the  skirmishes,  and 
so  she  took  her  revenge  on  the  prisoners.  She  made 
fourteen  of  them  kneel  in  a  ring,  while  she  toma 
hawked  them  all,  one  after  the  other.  Last  autumn 
Colonel  Thomas  Hartley  came  here,  burned  her 
palace  and  wasted  her  farms,  but  the  land  is  still 
called  '  Queen  Esther's  plain.' 

"  There  is  another  queen,  named  Catherine,  sister 
of  Esther,  near  Seneca  Lake.  Queen  Catherine  is  a 
great  horse  trader.  We  expect  to  take  and  burn  her 
town,  with  its  stock  farms. 

"The  scenery  here  is  so  beautiful  that  I  get  home 
sick.  One  afternoon,  when  the  lovely  white  clouds 
in  the  sky  were  reflected  on  the  face  of  the  river,  I 
wondered  why  war  had  to  be.  It  was  in  this  region, 
only  a  little  farther  east,  that  the  Moravians  worked 
so  faithfully  to  tame  the  savages  by  means  of  the 
Gospel.  But  how  can  a  poor  lout  of  a  redskin  know 
what  is  right,  when  we  white  men  make  war  with 
each  other  ?  So  long,  also,  as  the  Indians  kill  and 
burn  and  scalp  as  they  do,  I  am  afraid  the  counsels 
of  our  town  founder,  Arendt  van  Curler,  who  always 
told  our  fathers  to  keep  peace  with  the  Five  Nations, 
cannot  be  carried  out.  Why  did  the  savages  who 
cherish  'Corlaer's'  memory  follow  the  Tories  in 
their  murderous  purpose  ? 

"  We  are  going  to  march  within  a  day  or  two,  and 
Vrooman  says  we  are  sure  to  have  a  battle  up  in  the 


\D  BEEN  HELD  MANY  A  COUNCIL." 


INTO  QUEEN  ESTHERS  COUNTRY        IOQ 

river  valley  within  two  or  three  days  after  our  start. 
Before  I  close  my  letter  I  must  tell  you  how  kind 
Colonel  Van  Cortlandt  has  been  to  me.  Seeing  me 
one  day  in  the  camp  here,  he  stopped  and  asked  me 
my  name,  and  when  I  told  him,  he  said,  '  Why,  are 
you  the  son  of  Barent  Clute,  who  was  drowned  by 
the  overturning  of  a  canoe  at  Little  Falls  ? '  and  I 
answered  '  Yes,  the  same.'  He  said,  '  You  had  a 
noble  father.  He  once  saved  my  life.  When  you 
write  home,  please  convey  my  respects  to  your 
mother.  I  hope  you  will  make  a  good  name  as  a 
soldier.'  I  said,  'Thank  you,  colonel;  I'll  try.' 

"  I  must  tell  you,  too,  that  I  have  not  parted  with 
my  little  book,  the  '  Heidelberg  Catechism,'  at  which 
I  try  to  get  a  look  once  every  day. 

"  Please  remember  me  to  Domine  Vrooman  and  to 
my  brothers  and  sisters  at  home,  pet  Frolic,  my  dog, 
and  wag  pussy's  tail  for  me,  and  take  a  great  deal 
of  love  from  your  oldest  son.  I  hope  to  write  to  you 
again,  but  where  and  when  I  do  not  know.  Mr.  Vroo 
man  also  sends  kind  regards  to  all  friends  in  church 
and  Dorp." 

We  must  now  turn  to  read  about  Sullivan's  Con 
tinentals,  of  the  main  army. 


CHAPTER   X 

THE    MAIN   ARMY    STARTS    FROM    EASTON 

E  ASTON,  the  settlement  at  the  point  of  junction 
of  the  Lehigh  with  the  Delaware,  was  in  1 779  in 
its  infancy.  It  had  been  begun  by  Germans  from 
the  Palatinate  region  of  the  Rhine.  Fleeing  from  the 
oppression  of  the  French,  who  desolated  the  land,  as 
well  as  slaughtered  its  people,  they  were  glad  in  this 
lonely  spot  in  far-off  America  to  have  again  around 
them  fertile  fields  and  the  glorious  beauty  of  the  ever 
lasting  hills.  The  future  city  was  regularly  laid  out. 
The  houses,  one  story  in  height,  with  massive,  thick 
walls  and  much  cosey  comfort  within,  were  mostly 
built  of  stone.  There  were  not  many  books  in  these 
dwellings,  but  there  were  the  Bible  in  German  and 
the  "  Heidelberg  Catechism."  Besides  the  public  build 
ings,  jail  and  court-house,  there  was  the  handsome 
stone  church,  in  which  the  people  of  the  Reformed 
faith  met  Sabbath  by  Sabbath.  Besides  the  preach 
ing  of  the  gospel  of  peace  within  its  walls,  many  a 
treaty  with  the  Indians  had  been  made,  and  other 
works  of  mercy  wrought.  Since  the  battles  of  Brandy- 
wine,  Germantown,  and  Monmouth,  the  edifice  had 


THE    MAIN    ARMY    STARTS    FROM    EASTON  III 

been  turned  into  a  hospital.  Even  yet  a  few  maimed 
Continentals  lay  here,  much  helped  and  often  attended 
by  the  kindly  women  of  the  Reformed  Church. 

The  point  of  junction  where  the  waters  of  the  Le- 
high  come  rushing  down  to  join  those  of  the  Delaware 
was  a  spot  sacred  to  all  the  tribes  in  the  valleys  of  the 
two  rivers.  Here,  from  time  unrecorded,  had  been 
held  many  a  council,  here  the  hatchet  had  been  buried, 
the  calumet  smoked,  and  the  white  wampum  ex 
changed  in  token  of  peace;  for  these  symbols  had, 
with  their  users,  the  same  meaning  as  the  snowy  dove 
and  the  olive  branch  have  among  us.  Here  again, 
when  warlike  passions  raged,  had  the  tomahawk 
been  dug  up  and  the  red  wampum  of  war  sent  forth 
as  the  messenger  of  blood  and  fire,  to  summon  the 
tribes  to  battle.  Glorious  was  then  the  view  of  the 
primeval  forest  and  untouched  nature,  and  magnifi 
cent  is  yet  the  vista  of  mountain  and  valley,  forest 
and  stream,  from  the  lordly  city  of  Easton.  The  Del 
aware  was  already  flowing  out  from  the  Catskills  to 
the  sea,  and  was  then  the  boundary  line  of  states,  as 
it  had  been,  for  ag'es,  the  highway  of  the  canoe. 
Along  the  western  line  of  what  is  now  the  superb 
campus  of  Lafayette  College,  was  begun  by  the  pi 
oneers,  in  the  line  of  westward  advance  toward 
Wyoming,  that  "  Sullivan's  Road  "  which  in  historic 
interest  is  great  and  in  local  annals  has  many  tender 
associations,  for  it  is  known,  and  justly  so,  as 
"Lovers'  Lane."  Thus  with  this  highway  are 


112    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

locally  associated  those  two  passions  most  deeply 
rooted  in  man's  nature,  the  passion  of  giving  and 
the  passion  of  taking  life,  —  which  outflower  in  love 
and  war. 

To  this  place,  rich  in  glorious  scenery  of  hill  and 
vale,  Maxwell's  brigade  of  New  Jersey  men  marched 
from  Elizabethtown,  in  their  native  state. 

The  New  Hampshire  regiments  under  General  Poor, 
by  a  still  longer  journey,  arrived  from  Redding,  Con 
necticut  marching  through  Fishkill,  Warwick,  and 
across  New  Jersey.  The  Eastern  men,  although  quar 
tered  in  "  the  Court  House  and  other  spare  buildings," 
were  not,  apparently,  much  pleased  with  this  frontier 
town.  They  thought  the  people  were  chiefly  of  "  the 
Dutch  descent,"  by  which  they  meant  German,  and 
the  principal  merchants  were  Hebrews.  The  houses 
were  built  of  stone.  One  disappointed  Yankee  wrote 
that  it  was  "  a  place  of  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
houses,  and  inhabited  chiefly  by  High  Dutch  and 
Jews."  On  the  contrary,  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  Rogers, 
chaplain,  thought  it  was  a  pretty  village.  Here  he  met 
Domine  Kirkland,  who  knew  the  Indian  dialects,  and 
had  four  Stockbridge  Indians  with  him  to  act  as 
guides. 

By  the  i8th  of  June,  all  the  troops  in  town  were 
prepared  for  marching.  They  started  between  five 
and  six  o'clock  in  the  morning.  With  long  lines  of 
loaded  pack  horses  and  wagons  from  Bucks  and 
Berks  counties,  they  moved  out  of  town  and  over  the 


THE  MAIN  ARMY  STARTS  FROM  EASTON     I  1 3 

hills  by  what  is  now  called  "  Lovers'  Lane,"  — or  "  Sul 
livan's  Road,"  which  Sullivan's  pioneers  had  vastly 
improved, —  and  marched  that  day  twelve  miles.  Their 
route  was  from  Easton  to  the  foot  of  the  Blue  Ridge, 
by  way  of  Bushkill  Creek.  This  stream  has  a  curi 
ous  geological  history,  for,  like  some  people,  it  has 
changed  its  course  in  life. 

The  army  encamped  at  Heller's  tavern,  near  Hel- 
lersville,  in  the  southern  opening  of  the  Wind  Gap, 
which  is  a  wonderful  pass  in  the  Blue  Ridge  Moun 
tains.  At  daybreak  next  morning,  the  army  moved 
through  this  pass  and  took  breakfast  at  Brinker's 
Mills,  where  were  plenty  of  supplies  laid  up  in  big 
buildings,  —  "  Sullivan's  Stores,"  •  —  erected  some  time 
before.  Here  the  men  drew  four  days'  provisions, 
which  were  to  feed  them  until  they  should  arrive  at 
Wyoming.  Nine  miles  farther  march  brought  them  to 
a  log  tavern,  which  was  the  last  house  on  the  frontier. 
In  those  days,  every  inn  had  a  name  or  sign,  such 
as  "The  Ball,"  "The  Plough,"  "The  Wain  and  Six 
Horses,"  "  The  Star,"  or,  they  took  their  "hail,"  as  a 
sailor  would  say,  from  the  king  or  some  famous  hero. 
But  although  King  George's  face  had  long  ago  been 
smashed  or  smeared  out  or  over,  yet,  in  some  cases, 
where  the  paint  was  thin  or  bad,  the  Hanoverian's 
face  and  queue  were  visible.  Not  infrequently  the 
landlords  liked  the  old  state  of  affairs,  and  the  officers 
complained  of  many  a  "Torified  house." 

Until  early  in  the  spring  of  1 779,  there  had  been 


114         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

only  a  bridle-path  between  Easton  and  Wyoming. 
General  Sullivan  had  sent  Van  Cortlandt's  New 
Yorkers  and  Spencer's  Jerseymen  to  chop  a  pathway 
through  the  forest  and  lay  a  road-bed  that  should  be 
fit  for  wagons  and  artillery.  So  the  bears  and  wolves, 
woodchucks  and  ground  hogs,  were  routed  out  of  their 
lairs  and  holes,  rattlesnakes  and  other  vermin  com 
pelled  to  glide  farther  afield,  and  the  deer  sent  flying. 
Often,  when  camp  was  made  near  their  old  runways, 
these  antlered  creatures  rushed  right  among  the  gangs 
of  workmen,  as  if  in  surprised  protest  at  intrusion. 
Great  sunshiny  swaths  were  cut  in  the  forest  among 
the  mighty  tamarack  trees.  Swales  and  puddle-holes 
were  gorged  with  stone,  timber,  or  truck  of  any  sort 
that  was  handy.  Over  swamps  and  miry  places, 
corduroy  roads  were  laid  by  chopping  down  the  larch 
trees  and  packing  the  logs  together,  like  candles  in  a 
box.  Over  these,  brush  wood  was  laid  and  earth 
thrown.  Thus  a  rough  road  and  difficult  to  travel, 
but  a  wonderful  improvement  on  the  old  bridle-path 
or  Indian  trail,  opened  the  path  of  civilization  into 
northern  Pennsylvania. 

Now,  in  the  regular  order  of  march,  Maxwell's 
brigade  went  ahead  ;  Proctor's  regiment,  of  a  quarter 
of  a  thousand  men,  with  eight  pieces  of  artillery, 
followed.  Poor's  New  Hampshire  brigade  closed  the 
rear.  The  wagon  trains  were  still  farther  back. 
Wyoming  was  reached  June  23d,  but  Sullivan  was 
ahead  of  his  supplies,  which  had  not  come,  and  the 


THE    MAIN    ARMY    STARTS    FROM    EASTON  115 

host  had  to  wait  until  July  3  ist.  Then,  leaving  the  fort 
well  garrisoned,  the  band  played  and  the  advance 
began.  Besides  the  thirty-five  hundred  men  on  foot, 
there  were  a  thousand  on  deck.  A  fleet  of  two 
hundred  and  fourteen  boats  floated  on  the  bosom  of 
the  Susquehanna,  bearing  the  artillery,  salt  provisions, 
flour,  liquor,  ammunition,  and  heavy  baggage.  On 
land,  about  twelve  or  fifteen  hundred  pack  horses 
carried  stores  and  food,  and  seven  hundred  cattle 
were  driven  along  to  provide  fresh  meat.  Game  and 
fish  in  the  forest  might  provide  tit-bits,  and  in  the 
lake  region  were  corn,  potatoes,  and  vegetables ;  but 
meat  and  flour  they  must  carry  with  them.  Like  a 
snail  the  army  had  to  carry  its  house  on  its  back, 
while  moving  on  its  belly. 

The  march  to  Tioga  Point,  a  distance  from  Wyo 
ming  of  sixty-five  miles,  through  the  rough  forest 
country,  was  one  of  great  hardship ;  but,  on  August 
loth,  the  army  halted  at  a  point  a  mile  below  the 
junction  of  the  Chemung  River  with  the  branch  of 
the  Susquehanna  flowing  from  Otsego  Lake.  Then 
the  whole  body  of  infantry,  locking  arms,  stepped 
waist  deep  into  the  water,  and  the  men,  bracing  them 
selves  firmly  against  the  swift  current,  crossed  to  the 
opposite  side.  Then,  going  westward  a  mile,  they 
forded  again  the  Chemung  River,  and  encamped  at 
Tioga  Point,  between  the  rivers  flowing  out  of  the 
heart  of  New  York,  the  seat  of  the  Iroquois  con 
federacy.  Here  were  the  headquarters  of  the  army 


Il6    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

and  the  base  of  supplies  for  the  farther  march  west 
ward.  The  stores  and  boats,  as  well  as  the  sick  and 
wounded,  were  to  be  left  here  under  guard,  in  the 
large  fort  which  was  to  be  built  and  named  by  the 
army  after  its  trusted  commander. 

To  this  place  with  her  father,  John  Harby,  in 
charge  of  the  army  wagons,  came  Henrietta  Harby, 
who,  as  it  proved,  was  to  spend  several  weeks  in 
Fort  Sullivan,  and  lose  her  own  heart. 

We  must  now  glance  at  that  country,  rich  in  grain 
fields,  which  the  Continental  Congress  had  ordered 
Major-General  John  Sullivan,  with  his  five  thousand 
Continental  troops,  to  invade,  wherein  pined  many 
scores  of  captives,  survivors  of  the  hundreds  who 
had  sunk  under  the  tomahawk  or  who  filled  unknown 
graves. 


CHAPTER   XI 

KING  GEORGE'S  GRANARY 

UNTIL  after  the  Revolutionary  War,  nearly  all 
central  and  western  New  York  was  a  wilder 
ness.  The  Palatine  Germans  had  settlements  in 
the  Schoharie  and  in  the  upper  Mohawk  valleys  as 
far  west  as  the  Utica  of  to-day.  Between  Schoharie 
and  Oswego,  the  respective  headquarters  of  the 
patriots  and  the  British,  there  was  Fort  Stanwix, 
later  called  Fort  Schuyler,  where  is  now  Rome. 
These  people  had  been  driven  out  from  their  homes 
in  the  Rhine  River  region  by  the  ravages  —  equal 
to  anything  ever  wrought  with  torch  and  knife  by 
red  Indians  —  of  the  generals  of  Louis  XIV.  of 
France.  Some  had  sailed  away  to  South  Africa,  to 
help,  with  the  Dutch  and  Huguenots,  to  make  the 
Boer  Republic.  Others,  their  kinsmen,  helped  by 
the  British  government,  with  the  idea  of  making 
"naval  stores,"  had  come  into  the  colony  of  New 
York ;  but  they  and  their  children,  like  General 
Herkimer  and  his  Oriskany  heroes,  were  stanch 
supporters  of  the  Continental  Congress.  At  Cherry 

117 


Il8         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Valley  and  on  Otsego  and  Schuyler  lakes,  there  were 
clearings  and  hatnlets,  occupied  chiefly  by  Scottish 
people,  some  Tories,  some  patriots.  Not  a  few 
Highlanders  had  found  peace  and  prosperity  here 
after  the  disaster  at  Culloden,  which  broke  forever 
the  power  of  the  clans. 

•  Watercourses  and  Indian  trails  furnished  the 
only  paths  by  which  the  adventurous  wood-runner 
or  white  trader  made  his  way  among  the  lands 
which  the  Iroquois  claimed  as  their  own.  When 
the  Revolutionary  War  broke  out  and  the  savages 
sallied  forth  in  small  bands,  five,  ten,  fifteen,  rarely 
twenty  at  a  time,  or  when  the  Tories  and  redmen 
joined  forces,  numbering  hundreds  of  warriors,  to 
kill,  burn,  or  destroy,  where  did  they  hatch  their 
plots  ?  Whence  did  they  begin  their  march  ? 

Apart  from  the  Indian  council  fires  and  tribal 
capitals,  with  the  great  central  council-hearth  at 
Onondaga,  near  the  later  Syracuse,  and  the  large 
palisaded  towns  and  fortresses  at  places  which  we 
know  only  by  their  modern  names,  such  as  Pompey, 
Aurora,  and  Batavia,  there  were,  besides  Niagara 
at  the  extreme  west  end  of  New  York,  two  points 
at  which  magazines  and  storehouses  furnished  sup 
plies.  From  these  issued  the  great  marauding 
parties.  One  was  at  Oswego,  easily  reached  from 
Canada,  and  by  all  the  waterways  east  and  west. 
From  Oswego,  by  Oswego  River,  that  supplies  the 
thread  on  which  many  lakes  are  strung  together  as 


KING  GEORGE'S  GRANARY  119 

on  a  rosary,  long  journeys  by  canoes,  of  warriors 
fully  equipped,  could  be  made  into  the  Mohawk 
Valley  and  the  eastern  settlements.  Farther  south 
lay  that  region  which  supplied  waterways  by  its 
chain  of  fifteen  "finger  lakes,"  and  their  connections, 
besides  the  Delaware  and  Susquehanna  rivers  and 
their  many  tributaries.  Their  valleys  and  tributary 
water  routes  could  bring  the  redmen  within  easy 
striking  distance  of  the  white  population  in  eastern 
Pennsylvania  and  southeastern  New  York.  The 
capital  of  all  this  region  "  the  Seneca  Country " 
—  was  at  Kanedasaga,  near  Geneva,  at  the  northern 
end  of  Seneca  Lake. 

Here,  between  1776  and  1779,  with  storehouses 
filled  with  everything  to  please  the  Indians'  tastes 
and  desires,  dwelt  British  Canadians  and  Tories  by 
the  score,  and  sometimes  by  the  hundreds.  There 
were  civilians  as  well  as  soldiers,  who  lived  among 
the  savages,  keeping  their  guns  and  war  gear  in 
repair  for  them,  helping  them  to  improve  in  agricul 
ture  and  house  building,  and  ready  to  give  them,  so 
far  as  the  savage  desired  them,  whatever  material 
advantages  the  white  man's  civilization  afforded. 

If  the  Caucasian  teacher  went  too  fast  in  his  sug 
gestions  of  progress,  the  Indian  plainly  told  him  that 
beyond  a  certain  point  he  could  not  proceed,  and 
that  he  proposed  to  stick  to  the  traditions  and  ways 
of  his  fathers.  The  savage  would  fight  and  he 
would  work  according'  to  his  own  ideas,  but  the 


I2O         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

squaw  must  be  the  chief  beast  of  burden.  As  to 
using  a  plough  or  the  tools  of  the  white  man's  special 
crafts,  the  redman  would  not.  So  the  ploughs  were 
left  to  rust,  and  the  grindstones  and  carpenter's  adzes, 
planes,  and  chisels,  lay  idle  or  were  turned  into  toys. 
Bullets,  lead,  powder,  axes,  knives,  iron  arrow-heads, 
beads,  woven  goods,  and  things  that  accorded  with 
the  Indian's  style  of  life,  with  rum  and  brandy  for 
his  debauches,  were  eagerly  sought.  On  the  subject 
of  firearms,  the  taste  of  the  warriors  was  highly 
cultivated.  No  quality  of  guns  was  too  fine  for  the 
redman.  He  wanted  the  best.  He  would  make 
almost  incredible  sacrifices  of  comfort,  pride,  or  pelf 
to  get  a  rifle.  This  latter  rarity  among  soldiers,  who 
had  only  smooth-bore  muskets,  usually  came  from 
Pennsylvania  or  the  continent  of  Europe.  The 
British  and  American  army  authorities  furnished 
only  the  ordinary  guns  that  shot  a  larger  ball,  but 
with  less  distance,  certainty,  and  power  of  penetra 
tion  than  the  leaden  pellets  of  the  riflemen. 

The  two  garden  spots  of  Iroquoisia  were  those  of 
the  Genesee  Valley  and  the  inter-lake  region  between 
the  Cayuga  and  Seneca  sheets  of  water.  Like  two 
middle  fingers  of  a  great  hand,  they  lay  on  the  rosy 
bosom  of  mother  earth  and  between  them,  like 
dimples  were  the  fat  valleys  filled  with  thriving 
villages.  In  the  early  summer  of  1779,  tens  of 
thousands  of  acres  of  young  corn,  fruit  trees.  — •  peach, 
apple,  and  pear,  —  with  gardens  of  beans,  squashes, 


KING  GEORGE'S  GRANARY  121 

and  vegetable  food  in  wonderful  variety,  were  in  their 
glory  of  greenery  and  bloom. 

It  had  been  the  purpose  of  the  British  govern 
ment  to  make  this  fertile  portion  of  New  York  a 
granary  for  the  feeding  of  its  army.  The  newly 
imported  British  soldier  and  the  Hessian  mercenary 
could  hardly  be  made  to  eat  maize  or  corn  meal,  or, 
as  it  was  known  in  England,  "  Oswego  flour,"  but 
all  the  king's  native-born  adherents,  Canadians  and 
Tories,  with  the  soldiers  long  on  service  in  America, 
had  learned  to  eat  the  delicious  food,  whether  as 
"suppawn,"  hasty  pudding,  "hoe,"  "ash"  or  "johnny  " 
cake ;  while,  as  boiled  on  the  cob  or  as  roasting  ears, 
few  even  of  the  "  green  "  troops  were  proof  against 
the  attractions  of  this  succulent  grain,  monarch  of 
American  cereals.  It  is  true  that  some  skill  was 
necessary  in  learning  to  eat  boiled  corn  on  the  cob. 
The  beginner  who  had  never  seen  "  beans  growing  on 
a  stick  "  was  apt  to  bite  deep  into  the  cob,  to  the 
detriment  of  his  teeth.  How  to  nibble  just  deep 
enough,  get  the  sweet  grain,  and  let  go  the  hard  core, 
was  the  problem  which  all  could  not  master  at  once. 
Yet,  when  once  learned,  the  art  of  eating  corn  on  the 
cob  added  notably  to  the  joys  of  life. 

It  was  hoped  and  planned  that,  with  the  Indians' 
aid,  a  considerable  saving  of  British  revenue  could 
be  made  by  feeding  the  royalists  among  the  revolted 
colonists  from  the  maize  lands  of  New  York.  In 
return,  the  red  allies  were  to  have  unlimited  ball, 


122    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

powder,  whiskey,  woollens,  beads,  mirrors,  and  other 
coveted  supplies. 

The  impartial  historian  and  the  truth-seeking  phi 
losopher  are  more  ready  to-day  than  of  yore  to  do  jus 
tice  to  our  grandfathers'  red  foes.  No  philosophy  of 
religion  is  now  accounted  sound  which  does  not  take 
into  account  the  fact  that  the  redman,  though  a  sav 
age,  was  religious.  He  bowed  in  awe  before  the  Power 
that  rules  this  universe.  He  saw  in  the  lightning  and 
the  storm,  in  the  sun  and  moon,  in  the  cloudless  blue  and 
the  star-embroidered  sky,  in  the  carillon  of  the  water 
falls  and  the  soughing  of  the  wind  through  the  forest, 
signs  and  proofs  of  the  Great  Spirit's  presence  and 
power.  He  pondered  on  the  mystery  of  creation, 
generation,  and  being.  However  rude  his  ideas,  gro 
tesque  his  ritual,  or  revolting  the  form  which  his 
notions  took,  we  must  acknowledge  that  the  Indian 
was  a  worshipper.  Many  a  rock,  a  precipice,  gorge, 
and  tree,  was  sacred  or  awesome,  because  of  the  sup 
posed  presence  of  Deity  or  Spirit.  Along  the  forest 
trail  and  the  river  path,  and  at  the  great  landmarks 
on  the  lake,  were  totems,  idols,  pictures,  shrines,  and 
votive  tablets.  Offerings,  which,  in  purpose,  mean 
ing,  and  self-denial,  ally  themselves  with  the  gor 
geous  worship  in  the  Christian  cathedral,  were  made 
continually. 

The  Indian  had  a  diplomacy,  also.  He  possessed 
and  made  use  of  what  stood  for  written  parchments, 
engrossed  documents,  marks,  and  seals.  He  held 


KING    GEORGES    GRANARY  123 

conventions  and  sat  for  days  in  deliberative  bodies. 
His  orators  made  eloquent  speeches  and  argued  the 
various  points  and  sides  of  a  question.  He  had  cere 
monies  for  the  making  of  war  and  peace,  of  which 
the  tomahawk  and  the  calumet  were  the  respective 
signs.  Wampum,  or  belts  of  shells  woven  together, 
was  his  money  and  his  documents  of  state.  Sent 
rapidly  by  special  messenger,  or  ceremoniously  de 
livered  in  council,  they  were,  in  importance  and  the 
forcing  of  decisive  action,  as  significant,  as  compel 
ling,  as  royal  despatches.  Stored  up  in  the  tribe's 
archives,  they  had  a  significance  such  as  the  great 
seal  of  the  state,  the  steel  dies  of  the  mint,  the 
book's  title-page,  or  the  originals  of  standard  weights 
and  measures  have  among  civilized  nations. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE   CAPTIVE   AT   KENDAIA 

WE  now  return  to  the  lone  captive  girl  at  Ken- 
daia,  Mary  Vrooman,  who  had  been  seized  by 
the  savages  at  Cherry  Valley,  and  see  how  savage 
life  looked  to  her.  It  was  many  months  after  she 
wrote  to  her  brother,  Claes  Vrooman,  that  he  received 
the  letter.  When  it  came,  it  was  not  an  affair  of 
folded  sheets  of  white  paper,  duly  held  together  with 
wafers  and  directed  by  the  outside,  as  in  the  days  of 
'79.  Nor  had  it  any  sign  of  postmarks.  Nor  did  it 
in  any  way  look  like  an  epistle,  either  of  this  or 
the  last  century.  In  outward  form  it  was  a  package 
of  layers  of  birch  bark,  cut  into  pieces  about  six 
inches  square.  The  writing  was  done  with  a  sharp 
ened  reed,  dipped  in  some  kind  of  red  vegetable  juice, 
which  made  a  legible  mark  on  the  white  bark.  Ten 
or  twelve  of  these  birch  sheets,  pressed  down  together, 
were  tied  with  a  piece  of  fawn  skin  and  sewed  up  all 
around,  with  strings  to  tie  and  hold  it  inside  of  a  man's 
shirt.  Thus,  between  the  heart  and  the  buckskin  of 
a  faithful  negro,  a  captive  like  herself,  it  reached  her 
brother,  Claes  Vrooman,  the  rifleman,  right  after  the 

124 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  125 

decisive  battle  of  August  29th.  Of  the  negro  we  shall 
have  something  further  to  say,  and  also  as  to  how 
Claes  Vrooman  found  him.  As  the  letter  was  dated 
late  in  June,  this  is  the  place  to  tell  about  its  con 
tents,  which  are  clear  enough  :  — 

"KENDAIA,  June  20,  1779. 

"  MY  DEAR  BROTHER  :  I  am  alive  and  not  dead. 
The  negro  boy,  Drusus,  who  is  here  a  captive  like 
myself,  is  to  be  my  postman.  He  remembers  grate 
fully  your  own  and  father's  kindness  to  him,  and  has 
offered  to  take  a  letter  to  you,  when  the  braves  march 
southward,  though  he  must  run  great  risks  in  getting 
to  you.  I  gladly  take  this  opportunity  of  letting  you, 
and  through  you,  all  my  friends,  know  that,  by  the 
great  mercy  of  God,  I  am  not  only  alive  but  very 
well,  and  surprised  every  day  at  being  treated  so 
kindly.  Nevertheless,  I  do  not  give  up  for  an  hour 
the  hope  that  I  am  yet  to  see  my  home  and  friends 
again. 

"  Let  me  tell  you  about  this  negro  boy  Drusus. 
He  belonged  to  a  Tory  from  Cherry  Valley  who 
came,  with  his  slaves,  to  live  among  the  Indians,  and 
who  died  here.  The  negro,  without  political  opinions 
of  any  kind,  seems  quite  happy,  but  says  he 
would  rather  be  among  our  people  and  in  his  old 
ways  of  life  again,  than  with  the  Senecas,  for,  when 
the  war  parties  go  off  on  long  distances,  the  warriors 
take  him  with  them.  He  finds  the  travelling  too  hard, 


126         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

and  they  make  him  do  all  the  hard  work  they  can, 
treating  him,  he  says,  '  like  a  squaw  and  nothing 
else.'  His  fault  lies  in  having  too  good  an  appetite. 
He  is  so  fond  of  whiskey,  and  of  getting  plenty  to 
eat,  that  both  the  Tories  and  Indians  amuse  them 
selves  by  playing  on  his  weakness  or  —  shall  I  say  — 
his  strength  of  stomach. 

"  They  do  it  in  this  way :  Drusus  has  a  tremen 
dous  thick  skull,  even  for  a  black  fellow,  and  quite 
often,  to  get  even  so  much  as  an  acorn  cup  of 
whiskey,  or  some  nice  thing  a  squaw  has  cooked,  he 
will  let  some  of  the  most  muscular  of  the  Indian  boys 
crack  him  over  the  noddle  with  a  club.  The  blows 
would  certainly  stun  a  white  man  or  crush  his  skull, 
but,  after  taking  off  his  cat-skin  cap  and  rubbing  his 
woolly  head  a  little  while,  Drusus  does  not  seem  to 
mind  it,  though  the  squaws  giggle  endlessly  over  it 
and  call  him  '  Stone-head.' 

"He  has  never  forgotten  the  kindness  you  showed 
him,  in  Schenectady,  when  nearly  frozen  and  tired 
to  death  while  on  his  way  with  a  bundle  of  ginseng 
root  to  Albany,  for  which  the  Dutch,  who  export  it 
to  China,  pay  such  high  prices.  You  gave  him.  a 
good  warm  dinner  in  the  kitchen,  and  let  him  rest 
there  for  an  hour  or  two.  I  can  remember  that  I 
once  warmed  some  soup  for  a  black  boy,  but  apart 
from  that,  cannot  think  of  any  details ;  but  his  mem 
ory  of  our  house  is  extraordinary.  He  tells  me  of 
the  standing  clock  in  the  hall,  and  the  print  of  Prince 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  127 

Maurice  and  the  painting  of  John  DeWitt  that  hung 
on  either  side  on  the  wall  —  though  he  cannot,  of 
course,  tell  the  names  of  these  worthies.  He  speaks 
of  the  brass  andirons  faced  with  the  Leyden  arms, 
the  keys  of  St.  Peter  crossed,  and  remembers  the 
two  rifles  set  on  pins  over  the  fireplace.  What  more 
than  anything  else  made  me  certain  that  he  was  not 
lying,  but  was  the  same  man  I  helped  to  feed,  was 
that  he  recalled  that  our  cat,  Jan  Steen,  had  six  toes. 
Drusus  has  not  only  been  very  kind  to  me  and  a 
blessing,  because  able  to  talk  with  me  in  English, 
besides  knowing  a  little  Dutch,  but  he  is  certain  that 
he  can  get  this  letter  to  you.  The  Indians  do  not 
like  him  to  act  as  a  fighter,  and  think  he  may  escape 
if  he  goes  with  arms  on  the  war-path,  but  they  trust 
him  as  a  burden-bearer  and  general  '  squaw-man,'  or 
laborer.  Already  rumors  of  the  coming  of  General 
Sullivan's  army  are  flying  about,  and  all  the  fighting 
men  are  expected  to  march  southward  soon. 

"  I  cannot  get  over  my  kind  treatment  by  every 
body  here.  My  ideas  of  savage  life  have  changed  in 
some  things.  How  fortunate  for  me  that  I  had  so 
many  Indian  girls  as  playmates,  when  we  learned  the 
catechism  under  Domine  Vrooman,  so  that  I  knew 
enough  of  the  Mohawk  language  to  talk  easily  with 
these  Seneca  people,  whose  dialect  is  different,  but  not 
very  much  so.  You  have  heard,  perhaps,  how  at 
Cherry  Valley,  Sarah  and  I  were  seized  at  the  same 
time,  and  our  hands  tied  behind  our  backs  with  deer- 


128         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

skin  thongs,  and  how  we  were  put  with  the  other 
captives  under  guard  of  some  warriors  till  the  fight 
ing  was  over.  The  next  day  we  were  marched  off. 
I  cannot  remember  much  of  the  journey  here,  except 
the  awful  weariness,  but  I  want  to  tell  you  at  once 
that  Sarah  was  left  at  a  village  of  the  Tuscarora 
tribe  called  '  Coreorganel.'  It  lies  on  the  banks  of  the 
creek  running  from  south  to  north  into  Cayuga  Lake. 
The  Indians  call  this  stream  by  a  name  meaning 
'  pink  with  salmon,'  as  indeed  the  water  often  is,  in 
spring  or  spawning  time.  Then,  passing  around  the 
southern  end  of  Cayuga  Lake,  our  party  of  Senecas 
travelled  northwest,  and  came  to  this  place,  called 
Kendaia,  which  is  in  a  very  pretty  country,  between 
the  two  lakes,  Cayuga  and  Seneca,  within  a  mile  or  so 
of  the  latter.  About  half  the  captives  were  distrib 
uted  in  different  Indian  villages  before  we  reached 
this  place  where  I  am. 

"  There  are  about  sixty  houses  in  our  town,  made 
of  poles  and  bark.  They  are  quite  water  and  air 
tight,  except  that  they  have  only  smoke  holes  for 
chimneys.  Four  or  five  of  the  buildings  inhabited  by 
the  chiefs  are  two  stories  high,  of  hewn  and  sawed 
timber,  and  painted  ;  but  these  were  made  by  white 
men  from  the  settlements,  who  got  their  pay  in  skins 
and  produce,  for  some  of  the  chiefs  are  smart  traders, 
and  know  how  to  strike  a  bargain. 

"  In  our  long  house  there  are  eight  families,  each 
living  in  a  big  room  with  the  fireplace  in  the  middle. 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  I2Q 

A  hallway  runs  the  whole  length  of  the  building,  from 
door  to  door,  and  the  family  rooms  are  on  either  side. 
Though  you  know  Indian  houses  and  apartments 
pretty  well,  I  must  tell,  you  that  the  one  in  which  I 
live  with  five  squaws,  —  one  a  widow  woman,  and  the 
others  her  daughters,  —  is  cleaner  than  most  of  them. 
As  the  house  is  only  three  or  four  years  old,  the  raf 
ters  are  not  so  black  and  shiny  with  smoke,  and  the 
soot  does  not  hang  in  such  long  streamers  as  in  the 
others. 

"  Many  of  the  walls  are  decorated  with  scalps,  plain 
and  painted,  some  old  and  well  smoked,  others  so  new 
that  I  can  recognize  the  property  of  owners  I  for 
merly  knew.  For  example,  no  one  could  be  mistaken 
as  to  Mrs.  Jane  McMurtrie's  hair,  for  it  is  of  such 
beautiful  golden-auburn  tint.  Poor  thing,  I  wonder 
how  her  four  bairns,  now  orphans,  fare  without  their 
mother!  It  seems  that  when  the  Indians  entered  at 
one  end  of  the  village,  she  had  time  to  escape  to  the 
hills,  taking  her  baby  in  her  arms,  and  one  child  by 
the  hand,  the  other  two  children  following.  All  day 
long  she  was  able  to  keep  hidden,  though  she  saw  the 
fires  and  heard  the  yells  below.  Toward  evening  the 
children  were  so  hungry  and  cried  so  persistently  for 
food,  that  she  found  she  must  go  down  toward  the 
house  for  some  milk.  As  all  seemed  to  be  quiet,  she 
ventured  forth,  hoping  to  get  to  the  spring  house. 

"  Alas !  the  children  saw  their  mother  no  more. 
They  cried  themselves  to  sleep  in  the  woods.  The 


I3O         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

next  morning  the  older  boy,  cautiously  venturing  for 
ward,  saw  hanging  on  a  bush  to  dry  what  he  knew 
to  be  his  mother's  hair.  The  children  were  nearly 
starved,  but  I  have  heard  from  a  later  captive  who 
passed  through  Kendaia  that  they  were  all  living  yet. 
By  the  way,  all  the  Indians  in  our  village  declare  that 
Brant  was  not  in  the  Cherry  Valley  massacre,  nor -any 
where  near  at  the  time. 

"  Except  that  I  have  to  work  hard  like  the  squaws 
here,  all  through  the  winter,  gathering  fire-wood, 
pounding  corn,  making  clothes  and  baskets,  and 
dressing  skins  and  furs,  I  cannot  complain,  for  I  have 
good  health.  Now  that  summer  has  come,  I  work 
out  in  the  corn-fields,  and  in  planting,  weeding,  and 
tending  the  vegetable  garden.  I  do  not  find  my  life 
hard,  except  for  the  loneliness.  Being  kept  so  busy, 
the  time  passes  away  tolerably  well.  I  have  been 
adopted  into  the  tribe,  and  am  now  the  daughter  of 
the  old  squaw  woman,  who  lost  her  husband  and  only 
son  on  the  war-path  a  good  while  ago.  All  her  daugh 
ters  are  older  than  I  am,  except  one.  Just  think  of 
your  sister  as  a  Seneca  damsel.  My  name  in  Indian 
means  Rising  Moon. 

"  Although  I  have  to  hear  a  great  deal  that  is  rough 
and  even  vile,  no  Indian  man  has  in  any  way  abused 
me,  and  I  must  say  that  many  of  the  braves  are  very 
respectful.  Although  I  knew  that  the  redmen  were 
pagans  and  had  heard  nothing  about  the  true  God,  I 
have  been  surprised  to  find  they  have  many  customs 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  131 

and  beliefs  which  seem  very  much  like  doctrine  and 
worship,  and  are  so  to  them.  I  must  tell  you  about 
these,  for  the  warriors,  when  they  know  that  they  are 
going  on  a  war  expedition  are,  after  their  way,  par 
ticularly  religious.  The  most  wonderful  of  their  fes 
tivals  is  that  of  the  White  Dog,  which  they  allowed 
me  to  see  and  even  take  part  in,  because  I  am  one  of 
the  adopted  daughters  of  the  tribe.  After  this  feast 
of  the  White  Dog  are  the  ceremonies  of  planting,  of 
which  also  I  shall  tell  you  something. 

"  The  Indians  think  that  a  white  dog,  when 
offered  up,  is  particularly  grateful  to  their  god.  The 
great  festival  of  sacrifice  takes  place  usually  in  the 
month  of  February.  I  asked  the  squaws  why  they 
chose  white  dogs  for  this  purpose.  They  answered : 
'  Because  the  color,  like  that  of  the  white  cloud,  is 
acceptable.  It  suggests  purity,  and  the  skin  of  the 
animal  is  especially  desired  for  the  making  of  a 
tobacco  pouch  which  the  Great  Spirit  uses.  He 
needs  a  great  deal  of  the  dried  leaf  to  be  properly  sup 
plied,  but  after  he  has  had  a  pleasant  smoke  he  is  in 
a  good  humor  and  will  the  more  readily  grant  favors.' 
I  have  noticed  that  at  the  edge  of  the  woods,  before 
a  rock  which  seems  to  be  sacred,  they  will  throw 
some  tobacco  or  occasionally  a  pipe,  as  an  offering. 
I  am  told  that  at  dangerous  points  in  every  one  of 
the  lakes  in  this  region  and  along  the  river  banks, 
there  are  such  holy  places  where  the  redmen  cast 
tobacco  in  honor  of  their  god.  Much  tobacco  is  also 


132          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

burnt  on  the  fire,  when  the  Indians  pray  or  return 
thanks  to  their  god. 

"  The  festival  took  place  quite  early  in  February 
of  this  year.  Two  white  dogs,  the  fattest  and  finest 
looking  in  the  village,  were  taken  to  the  Council 
House,  in  front  of  which  were  two  poles.  There 
they  were  'decorated  in  the  most  wonderful  manner, 
with  all  the  pretty  things  that  the  squaw  mothers 
and  daughters  could  furnish.  The  gifts  of  the 
unmarried  girls  seemed  to  have  especial  value. 
When  the  dog  was  dressed,  he  could  hardly  move, 
for  the  ribbons,  beads,  strips  of  buckskin  dyed  in 
bright  colors,  and,  in  fact,  nearly  everything  with 
which  the  girls  adorn  themselves,  put  upon  him. 
Then,  after  some  incantations  by  the  medicine  men 
of  the  tribe,  the  white  dogs  were  taken  out  and  hung 
by  their  hind  legs  on  the  poles  which  stood  in  front 
of  the  Council  House  gate,  and  about  twenty  feet 
high  from  the  ground.  They  were  strangled,  for  no 
knife  ever  touches  them. 

"This  done,  a  band  of  about  forty  or  fifty  maid 
ens,  with  their  wraps  or  blankets  around  their  heads, 
each  holding  in  her  hand  an  ear  of  corn,  marched 
round  the  council  room  to  the  sound  of  Indian 
music  and  out  again.  They  then  proceeded  in  a 
line  to  every  house  in  the  village  and  into  each  room, 
a  certain  number  marching  around  the  fireplace, 
extinguishing  all  the  fires.  When  nothing  was  left 
but  ashes,  the  trash  and  rubbish  from  each  house 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  133 

well  cleaned  out,  was  brought  together,  placed  in  a 
heap,  and  set  on  fire.  The  whole  population  of  the 
village,  from  the  pappooses  (except  those  asleep  and 
hanging  in  the  tree  branches)  to  the  chiefs  and 
medicine  men,  gathered  to  see  the  blaze.  When  all 
was  burning  hotly,  they  took  the  two  dogs  from  the 
poles  and  threw  them  on  the  burning  heap. 

"  Meanwhile  the  principal  men  of  the  tribe,  one 
from  each  long  house,  most  honored  for  their  char 
acter,  or  because  they  were  the  depositaries  of  the 
traditions  and  secrets,  led  by  a  chief  whose  special 
business  it  was  to  carry  the  brand  which  lights  the 
council  fires,  or  that  which,  as  in  this  feast,  begins 
the  new  year,  moved  slowly  and  solemnly  around  the 
big  blaze,  with  the  idea  of  getting  upon  themselves 
as  much  of  the  heat  and  smoke  as  possible. 

"  Then,  at  a  certain  signal,  when  the  fire  had 
burned  low  and  the  dogs  had  become  a  true  burnt 
sacrifice,  the  chief  men  formed  in  line.  One  placed 
his  hands  upon  the  other  with  the  idea  of  throwing 
off  and  out  from  himself,  and  upon  and  into  the 
other  one,  all  his  sins  and  evil.  The  second  man, 
with  the  same  idea,  slapped  or  laid  his  hands  upon 
the  third,  and  the  third  upon  the  fourth,  and  so  on 
to  the  end  of  the  line.  Then  the  last  man,  who  was 
supposed  to  have  taken  all  the  sins  of  the  whole 
tribe  into  himself,  went  through  some  incantations, 
which  soon  became  violent  contortions.  When 
apparently  nearly  exhausted,  he  made  one  final  ges- 


134         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

ture,  by  which  he  threw  the  whole  burden  into  the 
fire  which  had  burnt  up  the  white  dogs,  and  fell  to 
the  ground.  The  past  record  was  now  effaced  and 
the  gods  were  well  pleased  with  the  offering. 

"  After  this,  the  new  life  for  the  year  began.  The 
tribe  and  each  member  made  a  new  start.  The 
maidens  began  their  march  again.  Entering  every 
house  and  room  again,  they  relighted  the  fires  for 
each  family,  and  the  routine  of  life  commenced  once 
more. 

"  There  is  also  another  festival,  —  one,  indeed,  that 
reminds  me  of  our  Thanksgiving. 

"When  the  warriors  start  out  on  the  war-path  they 
are  expected  to  be  very  serious  and  to  give  up  foolish 
habits  and  ways.  I  have  heard  the  old  chiefs  lecture 
and  warn  the  young  warriors,  almost  as  if  they  were 
domines  and  the  braves  were  in  the  catechism  class. 
Each  fighting  man  worships  at  one  of  the  holy  places, 
consecrates  himself  to  the  god,  and  makes  an  offer 
ing  of  tobacco,  war  paint,  a  pipe,  wampum,  or  some 
thing  that  belongs  to  himself.  He  also  makes  a  vow 
of  chastity,  while  on  the  campaign.  It  is  against  the 
Indian's  law  to  cut  down  any  tree  that  gives  food 
even  to  an  enemy.  On  the  march  and  while  hunt 
ing,  the  braves  pay  great  respect  to  the  snakes,  tor 
toises,  and  the  animals  which  are  their  clan  totems, 
or  signs.  They  speak  of  the  various  animals  almost 
as  if  they  were  relatives  and  talked,  thought,  and 
acted  like  human  beings.  The  stories  of  imaginary 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  135 

actions,  which  the  old  men  and  squaws  tell  the  young 
people  as  what  actually  happened,  are  much  like  our 
fairy  tales,  or  ^sop's  fables. 

"  Several  war  parties  have  gone  out  and  returned 
since  I  have  been  here,  some  with  scalps  and  some 
without  them  ;  some  coming  back  in  full  numbers,  but 
others  retracing  their  steps  with  their  number  di 
minished,  having  had  some  killed  on  the  way.  No 
new  prisoners  have  come  to  our  village,  but  at  the 
end  of  the  lake,  where  the  great  Seneca  Castle  is, 
I  hear  that  four  women  and  two  boys  have  been 
adopted  into  the  tribe  by  the  widows  or  relatives  of 
those  killed  on  the  war-path.  Besides  the  negro  boy 
here,  there  is  a  white  man,  a  Pennsylvanian,  who  is 
kept  so  busy  making  salt  for  them,  and  is  away  so 
much,  that  I  do  not  often  see  him.  Besides  selling  it, 
they  have  much  ceremony  and  many  notions  about 
salt,  of  which  I  shall  tell  you  if  I  ever  see  home 
again. 

"  I  must  tell  you  how  they  plant  and  raise  corn 
here.  This  is  an  old  village.  Many  of  the  maize 
fields  have  been  cultivated,  the  old  men  say,  during 
ten  generations.  Some  are  almost  as  smooth  as  our 
own  at  home.  When  they  would  make  new  planta 
tions,  they  go  right  out  into  the  woods.  After  first 
making  sure  that  the  soil  is  rich,  they  chop  or  cut  the 
bark  down  near  the  roots  of  the  trees  and  up  to 
where  the  branches  grow,  girdling  the  tree  right 
around,  or,  as  they  say,  '  scalping '  it.  Then,  they 


136         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

draw  another  cutting  line  perpendicularly  down 
from  the  top  to  the  bottom,  with  hatchet  or  knife, 
and  strip  the  bark  right  off,  leaving  a  white  and 
naked  trunk.  Of  the  best  and  most  flexible  pieces 
of  this  bark,  they  make  their  canoes.  Some  of  these 
are  very  pretty,  both  in  their  shape  and  decorations. 
I  have  sometimes  seen  a  hundred  of  them  on  the 
Seneca  Lake,  which,  like  Cayuga,  is  very  long  and 
without  islands,  so  that  one  can  easily  see  what  is 
going  on  at  the  other  side. 

"  With  the  bark  not  used  in  this  way,  they  build, 
the  walls  and  roofs  of  their  houses.  These  are  made 
by  cutting  down  trees,  sharpening  their  ends,  and 
driving  them  into  the  ground.  Poles  are  lashed 
along  the  side  and  front  for  walls  and  between  the 
rooms,  partitions,  and  hallway,  and  on  these  poles 
they  fasten  the  bark.  You  would  be  surprised  to 
know  how  comfortable  these  big  bark  houses  are. 
Some  of  the  single  dwellings  are,  as  I  have  said, 
built  of  hewn  timber,  for  axes  and  hatchets  seem  to 
be  plenty  here. 

"  Almost  as  soon  as  the  trees  are  stripped  of  their 
bark,  they  begin  to  die,  and  soon  the  leaves  curl, 
wilt,  and  fall.  Then  the  woods,  that  but  a  few  days 
before  were  dark  and  like  twilight,  become  very 
warm,  full  of  sunlight,  and,  where  the  balsam  trees 
are,  very  aromatic.  The  corn  is  planted  as  soon  as 
the  bark  is  stripped  away  and  removed.  Soon  the 
sun  warms  the  ground  and  makes  the  little  blades 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  137 

turn  into  stalks,  which  are  hoed  and  tended  by  the 
squaws.  This  is  the  story  of  the  first  year,  for  in 
the  second  the  trees  are  burned  down,  and  in  course 
of  time  the  fields  become  quite  smooth.  The  har 
vest  time  is  always  one  of  gayety  and  merriment, 
as  well  as  of  work.  When  the  grain  is  all  ripe  they 
put  it  in  great  storehouses  made  of  wood  and  bark, 
and  these  hold  the  crops  for  the  winter ;  but  the  crop 
last  year,  they  say,  was  very  poor,  and  this  spring  we 
had  none  too  much  suppawn. 

"  The  Indian  is  very  superstitious,  or,  ought  I  not 
to  say  religious  ?  He  thinks  that  while  work  in  the 
field  is  beneath  his  dignity  as  a  warrior,  yet  that  in 
some  way  the  women  are  more  easily  influenced  by 
the  powers  of  Deity,  and  that  a  good  crop  depends 
more  on  them  than  on  the  men,  or,  as  they  say, 
more  on  woman's  spirit  than  man's  toil.  So  he  lets 
the  women  do  all  the  work  of  hoeing,  planting, 
and  tending  the  corn.  The  only  young  woman  in 
the  tribe  who  does  not  toil  in  the  fields  is  one  who 
has  been  in  Canada  and  is  the  widow  —  for  they  say 
she  was  married  in  the  church  by  the  French  priest 
—  of  an  officer  of  Butler's  corps  of  rangers.  He 
was  accidentally  killed  near  Niagara,  and  she  came 
back  to  live  with  her  people.  She  has  a  beautiful 
seal  ring  which  he  gave  her.  She  is  very  kind  to 
me. 

"  A  very  curious  custom  is  that  of  '  mothering  the 
fields '  after  the  seed  has  been  sown.  All  the  wives 


138         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

of  the  tribe,  who  hope  before  the  harvest  time  to  be 
mothers,  are  expected  to  go  out  at  night  after, the 
seed  has  been  planted,  and  walk  up  and  down 
between  the  rows  of  corn,  both  lengthwise  and 
crosswise,  so  as  to  surround  each  seed ;  for  the 
Indians  think  this  action  of  hers  will  increase  the 
fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  certainty  of  the  crop. 
Indeed,  a  chief  would  consider  it  a  great  calamity 
not  to  have  an  expectant  mother  go  up  and  down 
the  fields  at  least  once. 

"  We  have  also  orchards  here  of  peach,  apple, 
pear,  and  plum,  and  you  would  be  surprised  at  their 
size.  They  cover  many  acres,  and  in  blossoming 
time  they  look  more  beautiful  than  I  can  tell  you. 
Indeed,  the  peach  trees  made  me  feel  homesick ; 
for  I  thought  of  our  own  pink-blossoming  tree  in 
our  yard  at  Schenectady.  Nothing  has  so  brought 
before  me  the  picture  of  my  home  as  the  blooming 
trees  of  May,  and  this  year  the  prospect  for  a  great 
crop  of  fruit  is  very  good.  The  Indians  always  had 
squashes,  pumpkins,  and  beans.  Succotash  is  almost 
a  daily  dish  in  late  summer  and  autumn,  and  often 
even  in  winter.  Within  four  or  five  years,  the  Cana 
dians  and  British  people  have  distributed  at  Kane- 
dasaga  many  seeds  of  other  vegetables,  so  that  we 
have  now  growing,  either  here  or  in  the  other  villages 
near  by,  a  variety  equal  almost  to  that  found  in  our 
gardens  at  home. 


THE    CAPTIVE    AT    KENDAIA  139 

"O  brother  dear,  I  am  finishing  and  closing  up 
this  letter  weeks  after  I  began  it,  for  the  messengers 
from  Kanedasaga  have  been  here  calling  the  war 
riors  to  march  south  on  the  war-path.  Is  the  army 
coming  ?  God  grant  it !  I  shall  try  to  escape  if  pos 
sible.  Brant  is  the  leader,  they  say,  but  three  hun 
dred  white  men  from  Canada  are  with  him.  May 
we  meet ! 

"  My  daily  thoughts  for  months  have  been  on  how  I 
might  escape.  Now,  perhaps,  my  opportunity  is  near. 
I  do  not  know  what  route  the  army  will  take,  but  I 
feel  sure  that  if  the  destruction  of  the  Indian  villages 
and  crops  is  the  main  object,  then  you  will  pass  around 
the  southern  end  of  this  lake,  where,  facing  west  are 
two  rocky  gorges,  in  one  of  which  is  a  magnificent 
waterfall. 

"  Now,  I  have  found  a  place  in  which  I  shall  hide. 
It  is  in  this  gorge,  and  I  can  give  you  a  sign  by 
which  you  may  at  once  recognize  the  spot.  On  the 
south  face  only  of  the  rocky  sides  of  the  high  preci 
pice  grows  a  pink  flower  of  the  primrose  family, 
and  I  cannot  find  that  it  grows  anywhere  else  in  this 
region.  It  is  so  rare  that  it  will  be  a  sign  and  clew  to 
my  whereabouts,  for  though  I  hide  I  shall  keep  within 
call.  It  has  bloomed  for  this  year,  but  its  leaf  is  easy 
to  recognize.  I  enclose  some  specimens. 

"  If  our  army  gains  victory,  the  Indians  will  re 
treat,  they  say,  toward  Niagara.  As  soon  as  the 
people  here  begin  to  make  ready  to  move,  I  shall 


I4O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

hide  in  the  corn-fields  at  about  the  last  moment,  and 
in  their  hurry  they  will  not  seek  me.  Oh,  rescue  me  if 
it  be  possible !  If  our  army  is  beaten,  or  retreats, 
then  I  see  no  hope  but  of  living  and  dying  here 
among  savages." 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE  PARSON'S  PESSIMISM  AND  GIDEON'S  OPTIMISM 

HUMAN  nature  was  much  the  same  in  "the  times 
that  tried  men's  souls  "  as  in  our  own  days  of 
the  Spanish  War,  when  "  embalmed  beef  "  was  in  both 
the  air  and  nostrils  of  the  nation,  and  when  various 
scandals  connected  with  this  name  or  that  were 
bruited  abroad.  Our  Revolutionary  sires  suffered 
from  scoundrelism  and  mismanagement  and  delay 
also,  and  often  the  prospect  seemed  dark  enough. 
To  great  and  real  disorders  were  added  those  individ 
ual  and  imaginary  troubles  that  spring  from  bad 
livers  and  sluggish  digestion.  Let  us  look  into  the 
rough  board  hut  set  up  within  Fort  Sullivan  at  Tioga 
Point,  in  which  Dr.  Kinersley,  the  surgeon  (Franklin's 
rival  in  electricity),  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  Rogers, 
the  parson,  and  Captain  Bush,  of  the  Continental 
infantry,  were  messing  together  while  in  Fort 
Sullivan. 

The  parson  had  been  taking  rather  pessimistic 
views  since  the  misfortune  of  the  i3th  of  August, 
which  we  shall  now  describe. 

141 


142         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

On  the  evening  of  the  nth,  Captain  Cummings 
and  a  scout  went  forward  twelve  miles  or  more  west 
ward,  up  to  the  Chemung  River  valley,  finding  the 
large  Indian  village  of  Chemung  occupied.  There 
were  sixty  houses,  some  of  them  built  of  planks,  with 
a  council  house,  amid  fertile  fields  of  grain.  On  re 
turning,  toward  noon  next  day,  and  reporting  to  Gen 
eral  Sullivan,  a  council  of  war  was  called  and  a  night 
expedition  resolved  on. 

All  the  force  then  in  camp,  except  two  regiments, 
moved  forward  at  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening.  Sul 
livan  commanded  in  person,  Hand's  light  troops  lead 
ing,  Maxwell's  and  Poor's  being  in  reserve.  Through 
narrow  defiles,  in  the  pitchy  darkness,  and  into  foggy 
daylight,  the  army,  on  nearing  the  town,  proceeded  to 
surround  and  surprise  it,  Sullivan  even  throwing  two 
regiments  across  the  river  to  head  off  possible  fugi 
tives.  At  five  o'clock,  our  men  rushed  from  all  sides 
into  the  town. 

But  all  was  silent.  Not  even  a  dog  barked.  The 
savages  had  evidently  seen  the  scouts  of  the  day 
before,  taken  the  hint,  and  fled. 

Resting  the  main  body  in  this  town  of  Chemung, 
General  Hand  sent  forward  Captain  Bush  and  his 
company  on  the  trail  to  Newtown.  After  a  mile  or 
so,  they  came  to  a  village  with  fires  burning,  plenty 
of  skins  and  blankets  lying  round,  as  if  men  had 
slept  there  and  but  recently  risen,  and  one  dog  asleep. 
Captain  Bush  sent  back  for  reinforcements,  and,  these 


THE    PARSON  S    PESSIMISM  143 

coming  up,  they  advanced  another  mile,  and  had 
reached  the  low  ground  under  a  ridge  or  hill  on  their 
right. 

Suddenly,  from  scores  of  Indians  in  hiding,  a 
deadly  fire  was  poured  into  Hubley's  regiment.  In 
a  few  moments,  sixteen  men  had  reeled  and  fallen  to 
the  ground.  Six  of  the  Pennsylvanians,  a  sergeant, 
drummer,  and  four  privates,  were  killed  on  the  spot. 
The  guide,  pight  soldiers,  an  adjutant,  and  two  cap 
tains  were  wounded.  It  looked  very  much  like  an 
ambuscade. 

But  not  for  one  moment  did  the  Pennsylvania 
Continentals  falter.  Colonel  Hubley,  sending  Cap 
tain  Bush  to  attack  the  savages  in  the  rear,  ordered 
his  men  to  charge  up  the  hill.  This  they  did  with 
cheers,  setting  the  redskins  on  the  run  at  once. 
These  were  soon  far  away  and  invisible,  before  Cap 
tain  Bush  got  near  their  rear.  As  usual,  they  bore  off 
their  dead  and  wounded,  only  blood  drops  here  and 
there,  and  a  coat  and  hat  with  bullet  holes  in  them, 
telling  of  the  effectiveness  of  the  Continental  fire. 

Besides  mounting  the  severely  wounded  of  his 
command,  Colonel  Hubley  had  the  corpses  of  his 
slain  comrades  tied  on  the  horses  that  had  carried 
provisions,  and  these  were  brought  to  camp  and 
buried.  The  officiating  chaplain,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Rogers, 
delivered  a  discourse  appropriate  to  the  sad  occasion. 
Then  Proctor's  regimental  band  played  the  mournful 
tune,  "  Roslin  Castle  " ;  and  there,  under  the  leafy 


144         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

aisles  of  the  forest,  under  Nature's  great  cathedral 
floor,  were  laid  to  rest  the  brave  Pennsylvanians. 
Here  is  the  score  of  the  music  set  to  Sir  Walter 
Scott's  lines :  — 


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THE  PARSON'S  PESSIMISM  145 

General  Hand  wished  to  push  on  to  the  larger 
Newtown,  but  General  Sullivan  thought  best  to  halt 
and  return. 

Returning  to  the  Indian  village,  the  torch  was 
applied  to  the  sixty  houses,  and  the  whole  laid  in 
ashes.  Crossing  the  river,  the  thousands  of  corn 
stalks  full  of  ripe  ears  were  razed  by  the  men  of 
Maxwell's  and  Poor's  brigades.  While  at  this  work 
of  destruction,  prowling  savages  came  near,  and 
killed  one  man  and  wounded  several  others.  After 
twenty-three  hours  of  severe  and  continuous  duty, 
the  weary  men  rested  in  camp  again  near  Fort 
Sullivan.  It  was  this  night  expedition  that  helped 
to  fill  the  parson,  and  perhaps  the  captain,  with  evil 
augury  and  gloomy  forebodings.  Certainly,  as  to 
success,  it  was  hardly  equal  to  Gideon's  night  attack 
on  the  Midianites. 

The  pessimistic  parson,  Dr.  Rogers,  chaplain  of 
the  Third  Pennsylvania  Brigade,  ha*d  been  ordered 
to  duty  at  Wyoming,  and  was  waiting  in  the  fort 
until  the  boats  should  be  ready  to  proceed  thither. 
They  were  to  load  with  provisions  and  stores,  and 
then  come  back  to  meet  the  army  on  its  return 
march.  Let  us  see  how  he  felt  about  the  prospects 
of  an  avenging  expedition,  which  rascally  contractors 
had  ruinously  delayed,  and  which  many  of  the  Tories 
in  their  treason  and  Quakers  in  their  principles 
hoped  to  see  defeated.  It  was  a  chill  evening  in 
August,  and  the  three  gentlemen,  representing  medi- 


146         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

cine,  theology,  and  war,  invited  in  Mr.  John  Harby 
and  his  daughter  Henrietta,  for  a  pleasant  hour  or 
two  indoors,  for  the  cool  nights  made  shelter  very 
agreeable,  and  even  a  fire  in  the  morning  seemed 
very  appropriate. 

It  was  on  the  evening  of  August  25th,  after  Henri 
etta  had  written  her  letter  to  Philadelphia,  that  the 
surgeon  and  the  chaplain,  feeling  in  a  mood  for 
mutual  confidences,  unbosomed  themselves.  They 
"  told  tales  out  of  school "  ;  or,  shall  we  say,  because 
"the  cat,"  the  commander-in-chief,  was  now  "away," 
the  mice  felt  at  full  liberty  to  gambol.  At  any  rate, 
Surgeon  Kinersley,  after  the  usual  polite  common 
places  were  over,  broke  out  at  once. 

"Well,  chaplain,  what  do  you  think  of  it  all? 
Will  the  army  succeed,  or  soon  come  back  a-fiy- 
ing?" 

"  Now  that  you  ask  me,  doctor,  I  must  speak 
plainly.  I  have  no  hopes  of  General  Sullivan's 
accomplishing  anything ;  but  let  us  ask  the  opinion 
of  Captain  Bush,  and  call  for  reasons.  What 
think  you,  captain  ?  Are  the  Six  Nations  to  be 
crushed  ? " 

"  Well,  I  must  confess,  parson,  the  task  is  difficult, 
and  ours  is  the  worst  equipped  army  for  such  an 
expedition  I  could  imagine,  for  an  advance  into  a 
pathless  wilderness.  Our  men  are  to  move  with 
pack  trains  and  artillery  in  a  wild  forest  land,  un 
mapped  and  unsurveyed,  against  foes  which  have 


THE    PARSON  S    PESSIMISM  147 

every  resource  of  cunning  and  that  can  keep  them 
selves  invisible,  while  ready  to  spring  like  panthers 
at  every  weak  spot,  and  able  to  lure  even  the  most 
cautious  men  into  ambush.  I  shall  not  be  surprised 
if  the  men  of  our  army,  while  being  harassed  and 
subject  to  loss  continually,  will  not  see  a  hundred 
Indians  at  any  one  time.  I  should  even  be  willing 
to  wager  that  many  soldiers  will  come  back  without 
seeing  a  single  redskin,  unless  it  may  be  the  tip  of 
his  nose  or  scalp-lock  behind  a  rock  or  a  tree!  " 

Both  parson  and  doctor  laughed  very  heartily  at 
this,  and  then  the  medical  man  said  :  "  What  I  worry 
over  is  the  insufficiency  of  food  and  supplies.  Why, 
think  of  it !  They  have  only  twenty-seven  days' 
rations.  Even  suppose  that  the  cattle  do  not  stray 
off  or  the  horses  get  stampeded,  what  can  they 
accomplish  in  so  short  a  time?  The  enemy  will 
surely  lure  them  on  from  their  base  of  supplies. 
Even  supposing  they  should  meet  with  no  serious 
mishaps,  and  even  reach  Niagara,  how  can  they 
get  back  again  without  food  and  through  a  wild 
wilderness  ?  In  such  a  case,  the  more  men  there 
are,  the  more  mouths  to  feed,  the  worse  it  will 
be ;  besides,  we  know  that  in  those  dreadful 
swamps  many  animals  will  be  mired  or  lost,  and 
the  horses,  lacking  proper  fodder,  will  have  to  be 
shot." 

"  Rather  a  dark  view,  doctor,"  said  Captain  Bush  ; 
"but  I  understand  also  they  have  hardly  any 


148         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

medicines  or  hospital  stores.  What  if  they  should 
have  two  or  three  serious  engagements,  with  a  good 
many  wounded  on  their  hands,  up  beyond  the  lake 
country,  where  they  will  have  neither  boats  nor 
wagons  ? " 

"  The  case  is  indeed  serious,"  said  the  doctor ;  "  for 
they  are  very  poorly  supplied  and  the  surgeons  are 
very  few ;  but  what  I  wonder  at  is,  how  they  can  take 
cannon  with  them.  With  one  or  two  hundred  men 
helping  with  ropes  behind,  the  wagons  may  possibly 
be  drawn  up  and  down  the  hills,  but  think  of  the 
heavy  guns  being  pulled  through  the  forest  and  over 
the  rough  face  of  the  wild  country,  where  there 
are  no  such  things  as  roads.  I  confess  that  my 
wishes  are  warm,  but  my  fears  more  than  counter 
balance.  I  rather  look  for  them  to  come  back  inside 
of  a  fortnight,  having  given  up  the  task  as  too 
hard." 

"  But  the  general  seems  to  be  very  punctilious,  and 
will  probably  hold  his  men  together  with  great  vigi 
lance  and  care,"  said  Mr.  Harby. 

"Oh,  yes,"  said  the  chaplain;  "that  is  what 
I  am  really  most  afraid  of.  The  great  parade 
and  regularity  which  is  observed  must  unavoid 
ably,  in  the  end,  letting  alone  all  other  obstacles, 
greatly  defeat  the  purpose  of  the  expedition,  con 
sidering  the  coyness  and  subtlety  of  the  Indians. 
This  firing  a  morning  and  evening  gun,  and  thus 
giving  the  Indian  notice  of  the  approach  and 


THE    PARSON  S    PESSIMISM  149 

whereabouts  of  the  army,  does  not  seem  to  be  a 
good  thing." 

"  On  the  contrary,  parson,  if  you  will  pardon  me 
for  saying  it,"  said  the  doctor,  "  the  Indians  look 
upon  the  cannon  as  loaded  with  all  the  '  bad  medicine  ' 
in  the  world  and  the  very  embodiment  of  mystery. 
Hearing  it  in  the  distant  forest  will  make  them  want 
to  keep  away.  Mark  my  words,  they  will  not  want  to 
get  near  a  howitzer.  Further,  is  it  not  humanity  to 
the  women  and  children  that,  hearing  the  sound,  they 
can  escape  ?  What  I  fear  most  is  that  the  lack  of  meat 
food,  to  which  the  men  have  been  accustomed,  will 
bring  on  disease,  which  will  be  the  ruin  of  the  army. 
What  is  the  reason  the  salted  beef  is  so  much  tainted 
this  year  ?  One  expects  more  from  good  salt  and 
good  beef,  as  these  certainly  were  when  put  in  the 
casks  —  were  they  not,  Captain  Bush  ?  " 

"On  my  honor,  yes.  I  was  government  inspector, 
and  saw  the  meat  and  the  salt.  I  cannot  tell  why  so 
much  of  it  is  spoiled.  Can  you  give  me  some  light, 
Mr.  Harby  ? " 

"Why,  yes,"  promptly  answered  the  civilian;  "the 
truth  is,  that  the  demand  of  the  Continental  army  for 
salt  meat  rations  long  ago  exhausted  the  supply  of 
casks  made  of  seasoned  wood.  Then,  the  coopers 
being  mostly  in  the  army,  the  raw  hands  had  to  use 
green  wood.  Now,  this  spoils  the  brine,  and  makes  a 
fermenting  compound  which  first  sours  and  then 
taints  the  meat." 


I5O    THE -PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

"  For  this  reason,  then,"  said  the  doctor,  "  our  men 
must  go  hungry  in  the  wilderness.  I  prophesy  that 
within  a  week  our  men  with  General  Sullivan  will 
have  to  come  to  half  rations.  Then  their  patriotism 
will  be  tested.  I  fear  a  revolt,  or  at  least  a  refusal 
to  advance.  It  is  pretty  hard  to  be  a  patriot  when 
you  are  hungry,  and  we  shall  see  whether  the  Con 
tinental  boys  will  come  back  having  accomplished 
nothing." 

"Well,  better  that,  than  have  another  Braddock 
affair,"  said  Captain  Bush. 

"  Well,  gentlemen,"  said  Mr.  Harby  ;  "  since  we 
are,  from  present  appearances,  not  likely  to  have  any 
battle  or  victory  in  this  part  of  the  world,  let  us  have 
something  from  ancient  history.  Come,  parson,  can't 
you  tell  us  about  a  Bible  battle,  and  cheer  us  up  a 
little?" 

"  Oh,  do,  domine,  please,"  said  Miss  Harby,  clap 
ping  her  hands. 

"  I  will,  fair  lady,  if  you  will  promise  to  decorate 
my  fireplace  with  goldenrod  to-morrow,"  said  the 
parson,  looking  archly  at  the  young  lady. 

"I'll  do  so,"  said  she;  "but  you  must  be  sure  to 
tell  about  some  battle  that  brought  victory  to  the 
right  side,  and  a  great  victory,  too." 

"  I  join  with  the  young  lady,"  said  Dr.  Kinersley ; 
"  tell  us  about  something  successful.  We  want  our 
leader  to  be  a  Gideon." 

"  The  allusion  is  a  happy  one,"  said  the  parson ; 


THE  PARSON'S  PESSIMISM  151 

"and  I'll  turn  to  the  book  of  Judges  at  once,  for 
there  we  read  how  the  Hebrew  republics  strove  for 
their  freedom." 

"  Yes,  domine,"  said  Miss  Harby ;  "  and  about 
King  Bramblebush,  too.  I  once  heard  you  preach 
about  how  the  trees  went  forth  on  a  time  to  anoint 
a  king  over  them,  and  how,  after  the  olive,  and  the 
fig  and  the  vine  declined  the  honor,  the  bramble 
accepted.  I  declare,  I  have  thought  of  that  when  I 
have  seen  some  of  these  swamps  we  have  been 
through  on  the  march  from  Easton.  But  do  tell  us 
about  Gideon  and  his  victory.  I  never  could  under 
stand  about  those  pitchers  and  trumpets,  and,  as  for 
lamps  being  inside  the  pitchers,  how  could  they 
manage  them  ?  Imagine  our  Continentals  bringing 
crockery  and  lamps  into  this  wilderness." 

All  laughed  heartily  at  this.  "  And  yet,  my 
daughter,"  said  Mr.  Harby,  "  I  imagine  that  a  few 
Indians  rushing  around  our  camp  at  night  with  fire 
could  create  a  panic  by  scaring  the  horses.  Do  you 
suppose  that  was  Gideon's  idea,  —  by  making  a 
noise  and  fire  to  demoralize  the  host  ?  " 

"  Come,  doctor,  give  us  all  the  facts  in  the  case, 
as  you  can  out  of  your  learning,"  said  Captain 
Bush. 

"I  shall  be  glad  to  do  so,"  said  Dr.  Rogers; 
"  for  the  story  is  well  told  in  the  seventh  chapter 
of  Judges.  A  great  army  of  Midianites  and 
Amalekites  and  other  desert  tribes  had  pitched 


152          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

their  tents  in  the  valley  by  the  hill  of  Morah. 
They  were  like  grasshoppers  in  multitude,  and  their 
camels  were^  without  number,  'as  the  sand  by 
the  seaside  for  multitude.'  Nevertheless,  Gideon, 
the  wise  leader,  knew  that  a  few  tried  and  brave 
men  are  better  than  a  mighty  host,  and  so  he  said 
in  substance :  — 

"  '  Cowards  to  the  rear ! ' 

"  At  once  twenty-two  thousand  of  his  men  left  him 
and  went  home.  He  had  ten  thousand  left,  but  the 
Divine  Spirit  in  him  told  him  that  even  these,  un 
seasoned  and  conceited  as  they  were,  were  too  many. 
So,  after  letting  them  get  thirsty,  he  brought  them 
down  to  the  riverside  to  drink.  Now,  in  war  time, 
vigilance  is  the  first  virtue.  Certainly  it  is  so  with 
our  General  Sullivan's  army.  Gideon's  test  is  a  good 
one,  even  for  to-day.  If  a  man  is,  first  of  all,  intent 
upon  satisfying  his  selfish  appetite,  he  will,  without 
thinking  of  the  wary  and  watching  foe,  fall  down 
upon  his  knees  or  lie  upon  his  belly  at  full  length 
and  put  his  mouth  right  to  the  water  and  drink 
greedily.  That  is  just  the  moment  when  the  enemy 
can  take  him  unawares,  charge  upon  him,  or  shoot 
him.  Or,  if  it  be  a  thirsty  army,  he  can  drive  the 
mass  of  men,  huddled  together,  into  the  stream,  and 
drown  or  shoot  them  at  leisure." 

"  Isn't  that  the  way  that  most  thirsty  men  would 
drink  ?  "  asked  Dr.  Kinersley. 

"  Yes,  doctor,  I  grant  you  the  average  man  would ; 


THE    PARSONS     PESSIMISM  153 

but  the  trained  veterans,  like  our  scouts  or  riflemen, 
who  know  that  an  Indian  is  likely  to  lurk  in  ambush 
especially  near  a  spring  or  open  water-side,  would 
not  do  this.  Such  a  man  would  not  kneel  at  all. 
He  would  crouch  by  the  river  or  spring  side,  and, 
without  taking  his  eyes  off  from  possible  danger, 
but  surveying  all  around  him,  he  would  dip  up 
in  his  hand  a  little  water  at  a  time,  and  drink  even 
while  watching.  In  a  word,  he  would  never  be  taken 
unawares. 

"  These  were  the  kind  of  men  that  Gideon  selected, 
who  did  not  bow  down,  like  the  rest  of  the  people, 
but  that  lapped,  putting  their  hands  to  their  mouths. 
These  alert  and  vigilant  men  that  formed  his  chosen 
band  of  three  hundred  could  carry  their  provisions 
on  their  backs  and  their  trumpets  with  them.  With 
such  men,  Gideon  felt  that  God  had  already  given 
the  Midianite  host  into  his  hands." 

"  But  the  trumpet,  chaplain,  was  not  much  of  a 
weapon,  was  it  ? "  asked  Captain  Bush,  with  a  pleas 
ant  smile  of  mild  credulity. 

"  No,  captain,  I  grant  you  that,"  said  Dr.  Rogers ; 
"  but  then,  in  war  it  is  the  moral  as  well  as  the 
physical  state  of  the  soldier  that  we  must  consider. 
The  race  is  not  always  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to 
the  strong.  The  bravest  men  in  a  panic  seem  good 
for  nothing,  while  even  delicate  youth  not  naturally 
brave  can  be  made  to  fight  like  lions  under  an  inspir 
ing  leader." 


154    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

"Ah,  yes,  chaplain,"  said  Mr.  Harby ;  "then  our 
artillerymen  will  give  a  good  account  of  themselves, 
for  the  Indian  has  not  the  moral  courage  to  face  the 
cannon.  Why,  a  bomb  that  bursts  behind  him  scares 
him  worse  than  one  that  explodes  in  front.  Noise  is 
a  great  part  of  a  battle,  and  the  Indian  seems  to  know 
it,  for  his  yells  are  meant  to  scare." 

"  Yes,  quite  true,"  said  the  chaplain.  "  Gideon 
understood  well,  also,  how  a  man  feels  when  he  is 
only  half  awake.  Penetrating  the  Midianite  camp, 
he  heard  the  story  of  the  dream,  how  the  flat  sheet 
of  barley  bread  rolled  into  the  camp  of  Midian 
and  completely  overturned  the  tent.  Gideon  was 
mightily  cheered  by  the  interpretation  which  the 
dreamer's  comrade  gave,  and  went  back  to  immedi 
ately  arrange  his  three  hundred  men  into  three 
companies." 

"  But  tell  me  about  those  empty  pitchers  and  the 
lamps  inside  the  pitchers.  How  funny  it  must  have 
seemed  !  "  said  the  young  girl. 

"  Oh,  yes  !  "  laughed  the  parson  ;  "  but  you  must 
not  think  of  a  table  ornament,  or  a  stone  jug,  or  a 
bedroom  ewer  standing  in  a  basin,  nor  even  a  water 
pitcher ;  but  picture  in  your  mind  one  of  those  big 
earthen  vases  or  two-handled  jars,  with  a  compara 
tively  narrow  neck,  and  a  long,  rounding  body  taper 
ing  to  a  point.  In  place  of  a  hand  lamp,  think  of  a 
torch.  Then  imagine  Gideon  leading  his  three  hun 
dred  men,  each  one  silently  holding  a  dark  lantern  — 


THE  PARSON'S  PESSIMISM  155 

his  lighted  torch  inside  the  big  earthen  vase  or  jar, 
which  he  could  smash  with  a  single  blow  of  the  trum 
pet,  revealing  the  light  within.  Thus,  though  unseen 
in  the  darkness,  Gideon's  band  could  suddenly  form 
a  scattered  line  of  three  hundred  fires." 

"True,"  said  Mr.  Harby ;  "but  I  do  not  see  yet 
how  the  mere  sight  of  three  hundred  torches  should 
so  frighten  an  army." 

"Well,"  said  the  domine,  smiling,  "that  shows 
our  necessity  of  studying  oriental  customs.  Consider 
the  ancient  way  of  laying  out  an  encampment  in  an 
Asiatic  country.  A  group  of  camels  would  be  placed 
here,  one  tribe  with  their  tents  and  encampment 
there,  and  each  division  in  its  appointed  place ;  but 
at  the  headquarters,  the  general's  tent,  there  would 
be  a  great  torch  burning.  This  was  the  invariable 
rule  that,  at  the  tongue  of  the  commander-in-chief's 
chariot,  this  light  should  burn  all  night.  The  com 
mon  soldier  and  subordinate  officer  were  not  allowed 
this  mark  of  honor,  so  that  when  waking  up  at  night 
the  half-dazed  soldiers  would  see  not  one  torch  burn 
ing,  but  here  and  there  many  of  them,  even  three 
hundred.  Such  being  their  military  habits  and  men 
tal  associations,  would  they  not  imagine  that  instead 
of  one  army  attacking  them,  there  were  many  of 
them,  even  a  host  without  numbers,  and  that'  every 
torch  represented  not  a  soldier,  but  a  general  with  a 
host  at  his  back  ? 

"  At  any  rate,  this  is  just  what  did  happen.     It  was 


156         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

at  the  beginning  of  the  middle  watch,  just  after  the 
first  had  been  changed,  that  Gideon  with  his  hundred 
men  came  near  the  outside  of  the  camp.  Suddenly, 
with  a  blast  that  roused  all  sleepers,  the  valiant 
Hebrews  sounded  their  trumpets  and,  smashing  the 
earthen  vases  which  held  their  lighted  torches,  they 
uttered  their  war-cry.  Then  the  great  host  of  sleep 
ing  men  imagined  that  a  multitude  without  number 
was  attacking  them.  In  a  moment  more,  at  the  fresh 
blasts  of  the  trumpets,  their  fears  led  them  to  suppose 
that  those  nearest  to  them  were  their  enemies.  So 
they  either  fought  each  other,  or  else  fled  in  utter 
panic." 

"Well,  well,"  said  Dr.  Kinersley;  "that  is  a  story 
well  told.  It  shows  how  three  hundred  alert  men, 
under  a  brave  and  resourceful  commander,  can  accom 
plish  a  miracle.  Now,  I  do  hope  that  our  young  Con 
tinentals,  led  by  the  veteran  riflemen  and  Sullivan, 
whom  I  trust  to  the  utmost,  will  clear  all  New  York 
State  of  its  hosts  of  savages.  They  are  no  better 
than  wild  Arabs  of  the  desert.  It  is  a  case  of  thirty- 
five  hundred  against  many  thousands  fighting  with 
consummate  craft  on  their  own  ground;  but  God 
guard  the  right." 

"Amen  !  "  cried  the  whole  party. 

Evidently  there  was  no  Gideon  among  the  Indians, 
or  in  the  Tory  camp  not  many  miles  westward.  Sev 
eral  times  the  prowlers  of  the  forest  succeeded  in 
killing  men  sent  to  pasture  or  drive  in  horses  or 


THE  PARSON'S   PESSIMISM  157 

cattle;  but  pursuit  was  hardly  worth  while,  for  the 
savage  tactics  consisted  in  this,  —  to  sneak,  to  fire,  to 
run.  All  this  made  the  Continentals  eager  for  a  fair 
stand-up  fight,  and  this  they  were  to  compel  the 
enemy  to  give,  or  fly  in  force. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

JUST  BEFORE  THE  BATTLE 

THE  cool  nights  and  mornings  of  late  August  had 
already  come,  and  the  days  of  the  foggy  month 
were  nearly  over.  The  young  Continentals  woke  up 
at  the  morning  reveille,  given  by  horn  and  drum,  to 
find  the  dew  sparkling  not  only  on  grass  and  leaf, 
but  also  upon  their  blankets,  accoutrements,  and 
stacked  arms  as  well.  Several  times,  in  order  to  see 
clearly  for  marching,  they  had  to  wait  till  the  sun 
was  well  up  and  the  thick  fog  rent  by  the  sunbeams. 

General  Clinton's  troops  had  made  junction  with 
the  main  army  on  the  22d,  and,  after  some  reassign- 
ments,  the  permanent  order  of  battle  was  formed. 
Colonel  Van  Cortlandt's  regiment  was  ordered  to  act 
with  Clinton's,  and  Alden's  regiment  was  joined  to 
Poor's  brigade,  while  Colonel  Butler's  regiment,  with 
Major  Parr's  corps,  were  included  in  General  Hand's 
force  of  light  infantry.  Colonel  Dubois's  brace  of 
cannon  were  to  be  left  in  the  fort,  but  all  of  Proc 
tor's  were  to  go  forward. 

The  barrels  of  flour  were  now  to  be  taken  out  of 
158 


JUST    BEFORE    THE    BATTLE  159 

the  boats,  emptied,  and  put  into  bags,  which  were  to 
be  carried  on  the  backs  of  pack  horses,  for  from  this 
point  the  river  was  too  shallow  to  float  loade'd  boats, 
though  flat  craft,  put  together  with  wooden  pins 
instead  of  nails,  and  almost  like  rafts,  could  be 
pushed  and  hauled  some  miles  further  up  the  Che- 
mung  River.  With  plenty  of  water  in  winter  and 
making  a  terrific  flood  in  the  time  of  the  melting  of 
the  snows,  the  river  channel  in  summer  is  for  wad 
ing  rather  than  for  boat  navigation.  Its  purpose 
in  nature  is  to  irrigate  and  drain  one  of  the  love 
liest  valleys  in  the  world.  The  artillery  must  move 
along  the  river  flats,  have  a  path  chopped  through 
the  forest,  be  rafted  over  streams  and  have  cordu 
roy  roads  made  in  the  swamps  and  swales,  all  of 
which  meant  plenty  of  work  for  the  axemen  and 
pioneers. 

A  large  division  of  men  were  at  once  set  to  work 
to  cut  up  the  old  tent  cloth  to  be  made  into  sacks 
for  the  flour.  All  the  women  of  the  camp,  some 
forty  in  number,  lent  their  needles  and  fingers,  and 
the  work  was  kept  up  all  night.  On  one  day,  drop 
ping  this  manipulation  for  real  soldiering,  the  signal 
gun  was  fired  at  5  P.M.  in  order  to  form  the  line  of 
march,  according  to  the  new  assignments,  to  see  how 
well  the  comrades,  thus  rearranged,  could  move  and 
complete  formations.  At  seven  o'clock  the  army 
encamped  in  proper  order,  everybody  feeling  that, 
except  in  the  very  roughest  country  to  be  traversed, 


l6o         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

the  alignments  could  be  kept,  though  a  half  mile  of 
width  would  be  necessary  for  columns,  pack-horse 
trains,  and  flankers. 

The  horses  and  cattle,  as  being  the  more  easily 
stampeded,  formed  the  weakest  part  and  must  be 
well  protected,  as  well  as  guarded  against,  by  those 
who  were  dependent  on  them  for  rations  and  car 
tridges.  Men  and  horses  together  carried  twenty- 
seven  days  of  soldiers'  provisions ;  for,  indeed,  this 
was  all  they  had.  As  for  the  horses  and  cattle,  they 
must  live  off  the  country.  In  a  word,  Sullivan  must 
conquer  or  return  between  moons. 

The  next  day  was  entirely  devoted  to  packing  up 
and  getting  everything  in  order,  although  the  heavy 
rains  which  fell  hindered  movement,  but  on  Thurs 
day,  the  26th  of  August,  at  eleven  o'clock,  the  great 
army  of  chastisement  set  forward.  First  of  all, 
Major  Parr  with  his  riflemen  moved  ahead,  examin 
ing  every  hilltop  and  valley,  defile  and  turn  of  river, 
rock,  and  clump  of  trees,  to  prevent  possibility  of 
ambuscade.  Then  followed  the  surveyors  and  chain- 
bearers  under  Lieutenant  Lodge,  who  measured  the 
distances  exactly.  After  them  came  the  hundred  or 
two  men  of  the  pioneer  corps,  skilful  with  axe, 
spade,  and  crowbar,  who  widened  the  path,  chopped 
down  trees,  or  improved  the  road.  Sometimes  they 
had  to  stop  for  an  hour  at  a  time  and  fill  up  the 
miry  places,  in  order  to  give  the  artillery  wheels  and 
pack  trains  a  solid  basis.  Two  columns  of  the  main 


JUST    BEFORE    THE    BATTLE  l6l 

army  then  followed,  between  which  moved  the 
horses  and  cattle.  On  the  right  and  left,  the  host 
was  guarded  by  the  flanking  divisions  commanded 
by  Colonel  Dubois  and  Colonel  Ogden.  Clinton's 
brigade,  holding  the  post  of  honor  and  danger, 
brought  up  the  rear. 

During  the  days  of  routine  life  at  the  fort,  after 
the  army  had  left  to  go  into  the  wilderness,  a  party 
went  out  after  strayed  horses  and  cattle.  They 
succeeded  in  driving  into  the  fort  twenty-four  cows. 
From  living  long  in  the  forest,  these  creatures  had 
become  almost  as  wild  as  deer.  The  twelve  hundred 
people  in  the  fort,  whose  supply  of  visible  meat 
provision  had  been  reduced  to  five  lean  and  ill- 
favored  beeves,  were  mightily  pleased.  Visions  of 
juicy  beefsteaks  and  pot-pie  danced  before  their 
eyes.  Toward  evening,  sixty  boats  with  the  sick 
and  wounded,  and  with  the  chaplain,  took  passage 
to  Wyoming.  A  large  detachment  from  the  gar 
rison  went  on  board  to  work  the  boats  down  the 
Susquehanna,  and  to  bring  back  supplies  for  the 
returning  —  victors  ? 

The  first  march  was  short,  and  the  general  camp 
was  made  at  the  upper  end  of  Tioga  flats,  only  three 
miles  distant  from  Fort  Sullivan. 

On  the  next  day,  August  2/th,  the  army  moved  in 
the  same  order  of  march,  but  slowly,  on  account 
of  the  roughness  of  the  country.  Toward  night, 
having  arrived  near  the  last  defile,  or  narrows,  to 


1 62    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

be  threaded  that  day,  they  saw  all  around  Nature's 
table  spread  with  a  feast  that  would  delight  the 
soul  of  a  vegetarian.  Here  were  corn-fields  and 
gardens,  whence  they  could  and  did  draw  all 
the  corn,  potatoes,  beans,  cucumbers,  watermelons, 
squashes  and  other  "  sauce  "  necessary  for  a  liberal 
banquet. 

The  business  of  the  next  morning,  August  28th,  was 
to  discover  a  ford  for  the  artillery,  pack  horses,  and 
cattle,  by  which  the  river  could  be  crossed,  so  as  to 
find,  if  possible,  a  more  practicable  road  ;  for  between 
a  very  difficult  defile  called  "The  Narrows,"  only  a 
few  inches  wide,  and  the  high  hill,  there  was  little  to 
choose.  So  Maxwell's  brigade  and  the  body  of  left 
flankers  were  posted  to  protect  the  artillery,  pack 
horses,  and  cattle,  and  prevent  any  possible  rush  out 
of  the  forest  by  Indians  who  might  hope  to  stam 
pede  the  animals.  The  four-footed  creatures  crossed 
through  the  water,  with  the  rafted  guns,  to  the  west 
side  of  the  river,  and  moved  forward  a  mile  and  a 
half.  They  then  recrossed  the  stream,  so  as  to  get 
on  the  Chemung  flats. 

Meanwhile,  General  Poor's  New  Hampshire  men 
and  those  of  Clinton's  brigade,  with  the  right  flank 
ing  division  of  the  army,  took  their  march  over  the 
almost  inaccessible  mountain  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river.  It  was  hard  work  to  climb,  but  on  the  top 
they  found  level  land  and  superb  oak  timber.  On 
reaching  the  westward  slope,  a  magnificent  panorama 


JUST  BEFORE  THE  BATTLE  163 

burst  upon  their  eyes.  Glorious  plains,  rich  in  grass, 
grain,  and  fruit,  with  glittering  streams  of  water, 
covered  the  country  for  twenty  miles  round.  The 
broad  and  fertile  valley  was  flanked  on  either  side 
with  glorious  hills.  Even  the  Mohawk  Valley  men, 
accustomed  to  one  of  the  fairest  spots  on  earth,  broke 
out  into  exclamations  of  delight.  They  could  see  the 
river  running  forward  and  then  bending  round  in  a 
splendid  curve,  where  to  the  westward,  near  Newtown, 
pillars  of  smoke  rose  up  against  the  blue  sky.  Here 
they  knew  they  would  meet  the  enemy.  The  united 
army  of  men,  with  artillery  horses  and  cattle  in  the 
same  order  as  set  down  on  paper,  now  moved  forward, 
and  at  six  o'clock  encamped  on  the  site  of  the  Indian 
town  of  New  Chemung. 

Wonderful  things  were  here  to  be  seen.  At  least 
ten  thousand  bushels  of  corn  in  the  ear  stood  on  the 
stalk,  ripe  for  roasting  and  ready  to  be  cut  and  stored, 
while  all  the  material  for  succotash,  pumpkin  pies, 
and  potato  salad,  thousands  of  bushels  in  quantity, 
lay  in  or  on  the  ground,  ripe  and  ready.  Evidently 
here  was  the  chief  storehouse  and  rendezvous  of  the 
enemy,  the  key  to  the  frontier  of  New  York  and 
Pennsylvania,  from  which  an  army  could  always  be 
victualled.  Beside  the  dwelling-houses  were  great 
granaries  built  of  stout  timber,  with  bark  walls  and 
roofs.  That  they  had  never  been  occupied  was  proof 
conclusive  that  the  food  was  to  be  stored  for  King 
George's  allies. 


164         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

The  soldiers  went  rambling  around  after  supper. 
Many  a  time  was  the  cry  "  Eureka."  Not  only  in  the 
houses  but  hidden  in  various  parts  of  the  woods  were 
all  sorts  of  plunder,  carried  off  by  the  marauders 
from  the  white  man's  settlements.  Here  were  books 
and  candlesticks,  pokers  and  andirons,  copper  kettles, 
pot  hooks  and  kitchen  equipments,  carpenters'  tools, 
jewelry,  combs,  women's  clothing  and  ornaments, 
with  occasionally  a  chair  or  picture  frame,  linen  and 
bedroom  necessities,  or  broken  fragments  of  them, 
which  showed  that  the  Indians  had  employed  pack 
horses  or  canoes,  and  not  merely  their  backs,  to  carry 
off  the  spoil  of  Cherry  Valley,  Wyoming,  Springfield, 
and  other  settlements,  to  reward  or  amuse  their  squaws 
and  pappooses. 

While  the  men  lay  around  their  camp-fires,  a  scout, 
who  had  been  sent  forward  on  Friday  evening,  Aug 
ust  2 /th,  to  reconnoitre  and  who  was  no  other  than 
Claes  Vrooman,  came  in  to  report  to  General  Sullivan. 
He  had  gone  ahead  as  far  as  the  ridge  near  Newtown, 
on  which  the  battle  of  August  I3th  had  been  fought. 
A  few  hundred  yards  beyond,  camp-fires  were  burn 
ing,  and  the  flame  or  smoke  could  be  traced  far  up 
the  sides  of  the  hill.  From  these  he  judged  that 
there  must  be  a  thousand  or  fifteen  hundred  men. 
Evidently  they  were  going  to  make  a  stand,  and  dis 
pute  the  advance  of  the  American  army. 

This  was  indeed  the  case.  After  the  battle  on  the 
1 3th,  which  had  been  fought  entirely  by  the  Indians 


JUST  BEFORE  THE  BATTLE  I 65 

against  our  troops,  the  Senecas  had  sent  a  runner  up 
to  Geneva,  where  the  British  and  Tories  were  en 
camped,  urging  their  instant  march,  with  all  of 
Brant's  Indians  following.  Preparations  were  has 
tened,  and,  on  the  25th,  Brant,  Butler,  MacDonald,  and 
all  their  forces,  numbering  in  all  a  thousand,  of  whom 
about  one  hundred  out  of  the  three  hundred  white 
men  were  New  York  Tories  and  the  remaining  two 
hundred,  Canadian  rangers  and  British  regulars, 
reached  the  rendezvous,  west  of  Baldwin  Creek,  near 
Newtown.  With  skill  and  cunning,  they  selected  their 
ground  at  a  place  where  they  thought  Sullivan's  army 
must  march.  The  only  possible  path  seemed  to  be 
over  low  ground,  along  a  narrow  defile,  between  a 
ridge  and  the  river.  On  this  ride,  they  built  breast 
works  and  carried  their  line  of  timber  and  earthen 
defences  up  the  side  of  the  hill  well  on  toward  the 
top,  making  a  wall  of  defence  nearly  a  mile  and  a 
half  long.  The  whole  fortification  was  shaped  roughly 
like  a  V,  with  its  point  eastward  toward  the  coming 
Continentals,  the  British  left  resting  on  what  is  now 
Sullivan's  Hill,  —  where  the  monument  stands,  — 
and  their  right  resting  on  the  ridge,  which  ran  to 
the  river  and  commanded  the  only  ground  fit  for  a 
path. 

Now,  in  order  to  make  theirs  a  masked  defence,  and 
to  give  no  sign  that  anybody  was  behind  the  ridge, 
they  took  pains  to  have  no  chips  from  the  axes  or 
any  marks  of  human  presence  on  the  side  toward 


l66         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Sullivan.  There  were  three  or  four  Indian  houses  out 
side  the  lines.  These  served  as  bastions,  and  enabled 
the  enemy,  by  zigzagging  their  lines,  to  deliver  a 
flank  fire  on  an  army  charging  the  intrenchments. 
These  log  houses  were  not  touched,  nor  were  those 
of  the  deserted  village  farther  up  the  creek.  They 
were  left  standing  as  if  recently  deserted ;  for  it  was 
hoped  that  Sullivan's  men,  in  search  of  plunder, 
would  crowd  into  and  around  the  houses,  and  be 
thus  taken  unawares.  In  a  word,  nothing  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  intrenchments  gave  any  sign 
of  danger  or  of  an  enemy's  presence.  It  was  the 
western  or  inside  portion  that  contained  the  hornets' 
nest  of  war. 

To  carry  out  their  plan  of  ambuscade,  they  tore 
down  the  houses  at  Newtown,  dragged  the  logs  and 
poles  forward,  and  with  these  built  their  works  and 
fed  their  fires.  Their  idea  was  that  Sullivan's  ad 
vance,  seeing  no  signs  of  an  enemy,  would  pass 
around  the  heel  of  the  hill  and,  marching  in  a  long, 
thin  line  along  the  flat  ground  between  the  ridge 
and  the  river,  move  up  the  valley  to  destroy  the 
Indian  town.  Then,  by  making  their  main  body 
invisible  inside  the  concealed  breastwork,  and  post 
ing  on  the  hills  on  either  side  unseen  parties  of 
Indians  to  act  as  flankers,  they  hoped,  by  pouring  in 
a  heavy  fire  along  the  whole  line,  while  the  outlying 
parties  rushed  down  and  stampeded  the  pack  horses, 
to  throw  the  American  army  into  such  confusion  as  to 


JUST  BEFORE  THE  BATTLE  l6/ 

demoralize  or  cripple  it,  and  to  compel  its  return.  In 
a  long,  thin  line,  extending  clear  up  to  the  hilltops, 
both  on  this  side  of  the  river  and  across  it,  were 
parties  of  Indian  watchers,  who  had  signals  arranged 
by  which  they  could  give  notice  of  any  attempt  on 
Sullivan's  part  to  flank  them,  should  their  plans 
be  divined.  To  these  hills  could  be  summoned 
strong  parties  of  picked  warriors.  In  a  word,  they 
were  ready  here,  where  the  Chemung  River  bends, 
near  Elmira,  to  make  either  a  Braddock's  field,  or 
to  fight  a  pitched  battle,  hoping  eagerly  for  the 
former. 

To  make  assurance  doubly  sure,  they  waited  before 
putting  on  the  finishing  touches  of  concealment,  until 
the  night  of  August  28th.  Then  they  knew  from 
their  spies  that  Sullivan's  army  was  quite  near,  and 
would  be  up  the  next  day.  They  piled  on  the  green 
boughs  and  brushwood,  and  even  cut  down  and 
transplanted  a  large  number  of  young  trees,  so  as  to 
still  further  hide  the  works  and  to  remove  the  possi 
bility  of  being  discovered.  But  their  landscape 
gardening  did  not  avail  them,  as  we  shall  see. 
Theirs  was  not  the  art  which  conceals  art,  for 
our  riflemen,  as  wary  as  foxes,  had  eyes  like 
eagles.  These  were  to  expose  the  ass  in  the  lion's 
skin. 

Yet  had  it  not  been  for  the  excessive  caution  of 
Sullivan  and  his  trusted  officer,  Major  Parr,  of  the 
riflemen,  the  green  boughs  and  young  trees  might 


1 68    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

have  utterly  concealed  the  presence  of  a  fortification, 
and  our  men  have  been  surprised. 

There  was  no  time  for  preaching  or  worship  on 
that  sultry  Sunday  morning  of  August  29th,  for  no 
one  knew  what  an  hour  might  bring  forth.  Sullivan 
expected  a  battle  before  the  day  was  over,  but 
exactly  where  or  when,  neither  he  nor  any  of  his  men 
knew.  Breakfast  over,  the  horn  blew  at  nine  o'clock 
and  the  army  moved  forward,  the  light  corps  being 
first,  marching  in  six  columns,  Colonel  Butler  leading 
the  right  and  Colonel  Hubley  with  his  Pennsylvania 
Germans  being  on  the  left.  Behind  them  came  the 
axemen,  artillerists,  and  cannon ;  after  that  the  main 
army,  with  the  pack  horses  and  cattle  in  the  middle. 
Thus  slowly  the  great  host  of  thirty-five  hundred  men 
advanced,  the  surveyors  and  chain-bearers  .measuring 
every  rod  of  distance  made. 

After  fording  a  stream,  Parr's  sharpshooters  scat 
tered  themselves  widely  through  the  woods,  the  men 
craning  their  necks  and  peering  into  the  bush.  Their 
rifles  were  held  in  both  hands,  all  ready  to  cock  at 
any  moment.  Thus  every  man  alert,  the  riflemen 
had  no  sooner  passed  over  the  ridge  where  the  battle 
on  the  1 3th  had  been  fought,  than  they  caught 
sight  of  some  Indians  moving  about  in  front  of  them, 
one  of  whom  fired.  Then  they  all  ran.  This  was 
suspicious.  Going  one  mile  farther,  they  saw,  stretch 
ing  off  to  their  right,  a  large  area  of  low,  marshy 
ground.  Between  this  and  the  little  hillocks  on  the 


JUST    BEFORE    THE    BATTLE  169 

left  seemed  just  the  place  for  an  ambuscade,  so  their 
vigilance  was  doubled.  Pretty  soon  they  started  up 
another  and  larger  party  of  Indians  in  war-paint. 
These  also  fired  hastily  and  ran.  This  was  strange. 
Why  had  not  the  savages  hidden  themselves  and 
taken  deliberate  aim? 

These  Pennsylvania  riflemen  were  regular  bush- 
beaters  and  accustomed  to  start  up  game,  whether 
on  two  or  four  feet.  They  were  veterans  in  a  hun 
dred  forest  battles,  where  logs  and  stones  are  forts 
and  a  tree  is  a  tower.  They  did  not  fear  to  move 
straight  on,  yet  the  signs  of  danger  had  so  multi 
plied  that  Major  Parr,  bidding  his  men  watch  every 
moment,  ordered  a  lithe  young  fellow  to  pick  out  a 
tall  tree  and  to  climb  to  the  top,  to  see  if  anything 
dangerous  was  visible. 

Like  a  monkey  the  youth  shinned  up  a  grand  trunk 
and,  clambering  to  the  topmost  limb,  peered  around 
on  every  side.  At  first  he  could  see  nothing,  but, 
watching  keenly  through  the  forest  ahead,  he  noticed 
first  of  all  a  ridge  of  land  running  down  to  the  river, 
and  that  scores  of  young  scrub  oaks  on  the  slope  in 
front  of  it,  especially  between  the  ridge  and  the  creek, 
seemed  planted  with  astonishing  regularity,  in  rows. 
Indeed,  it  seemed  more  like  a  young  nursery  than 
natural  forest  growth.  This  was  like  a  piece  of  news. 
Still  peering  through  the  leafage,  he  discovered 
several  Indians  moving  about  inside  of  the  little 
ridge  of  land  and  up  the  hillside.  As  the  sun  was 


I/O         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

shining  in  their  faces,  he  could  see  the  great  streaks 
of  war-paint.  From  that  he  knew  they  were  all  ready 
for  a  fight,  and  expecting  one.  Very  soon  he  noticed 
others  likewise  well  smeared  with  gay  colors,  and  also 
a  tall  chief  with  plumes  of  feathers  on  his  war-bonnet 
Occasionally,  there  was  a  flash  of  a  steel  weapon  or 
brass  ornament  in  the  sunlight.  By  studying  the 
landscape  a  little  longer,  he  made  out  a  zigzag  line 
of  breastworks  covered  with  green,  but  none  the  less 
artificial,  running  down  to  the  river  on  the  left,  and 
over  to  the  mountain  on  the  right,  the  angle  being 
almost  directly  in  front  of  him.  In  some  places  the 
defences  were  quite  low,  but  here  he  noticed  pits  or 
holes  dug,  in  which  the  enemy  could  lie  and  easily 
defend  themselves.  Facing  the  works,  about  a  hun 
dred  yards  this  way,  was,  a  stream  of  water,  and 
between  the  ridge  and  the  river,  that  here  made  a 
great  bend,  was  an  open  space  on  which  corn  was 
growing. 

When  the  man  came  down  he  made  his  report  so 
clearly  and  intelligently  that  Major  Parr  at  once  saw 
the  situation  in  his  own  mind's  eye.  He  sent  back 
word  to  General  Hand  to  bring  up  the  light  troops 
immediately,  and  also  notified  General  Sullivan  of 
the  state  of  affairs.  Only  a  few  minutes  were  neces 
sary  to  do  this.  Hand  quickly  deployed  his  men, 
forming  them  in  line  of  battle  this  side  of  the  creek 
and  within  three  hundred  yards  of  the  works.  The 
riflemen  went  forward  as  skirmishers,  and  lay  under 


JUST    BEFORE    THE    BATTLE  I /I 

the  banks  of  the  stream  within  one  hundred  yards 
of  the  enemy. 

Inside  the  breastworks  rapid  action  was  necessary, 
for  Brant  and  Butler  at  once  made  up  their  minds  that 
their  scheme  had  been  detected.  Seeing  that  there 
could  be  no  surprise,  and  that  they  must  now  have  a 
regular  stand-up  fight,  they  agreed  to  attempt  first  the 
tactics  which  had  been  so  successful  at  Wyoming, 
Goshen,  and  Minisink.  They  would  make  a  feint  of  a 
sortie,  sending  out  a  squad  of  savages  who  should 
pretend  to  be  themselves  surprised.  Firing  quickly 
and  in  apparent  confusion,  the  Indians  would  then 
retreat  with  the  idea  of  luring  on  the  soldiers  in  pur 
suit,  in  the  expectation  that  the  Americans  would 
rush  pell-mell  after  them,  and  into  the  line  of  fire 
of  hundreds  of  guns  aimed  by  cool-headed  men  in 
ambuscade. 

But  this  time  Brant  and  Butler  were  not  to  deal 
with  raw  militia,  or  even  with  regular  troops  unused 
to  Indians.  They  were  to  face  the  Pennsylvania 
riflemen.  All  veterans,  and  led  by  officers  who  were 
graduates  in  the  school  of  forest  war,  they  could  be 
neither  scared  nor  lured.  So  after  Parr  had  warned 
his  men,  and  Hand  had  given  strict  orders  not  to 
pursue  or  move  forward  a  single  foot,  our  riflemen 
were  ready,  and  on  the  lookout  for  a  little  fun.  They 
were  soon  to  see  played  in  opera,  as  it  were,  "the 
spider  and  the  fly,"  while  fully  prepared  to  decline 
•"walking  into  the  parlor."  With  the  winking  of  the 


172    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

eye  and  even  with  certain  gyrations  of  the  fingers 
with  thumb  to  the  nose,  vulgarly  called  "  sniggle- 
fritz,"  they  would  greet  the  oncoming  foes,  knowing 
well  that  these  were  shamming  fight.  Yet,  if  Tory 
or  Indian  meant  more,  they  were  even  ready  for  them, 
bullet  for  bullet ;  yes,  scalp  for  scalp. 


CHAPTER   XV 

THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS 


riflemen  posted  along  the  banks  of  the  creek 
1  were  not  long  kept  in  waiting.  The  enemy  soon 
showed  his  old  tricks.  Out  from  the  angles  of  the 
breastworks  emerged  a  body  of  nearly  four  hundred 
Indians,  and  Tories  painted  like  them.  Leaping 
through  the  greenery  and  uttering  wild  war-whoops, 
they  scattered  themselves  among  the  trees  and  on 
the  ground,  but  keeping  themselves  well  protected. 
It  was  not  a  rush  or  charge,  but  only  the  play  of  war 
with  a  deeper  purpose  underneath,  and  the  riflemen 
knew  it.  They  kept  up  a  lively  fire,  which  our  men 
returned  with  spirit,  as  they  lay  safely  protected  by 
the  banks  of  the  creek,  so  that  very  little  damage  on 
either  side  was  done.  Suddenly  one  of  the  Ameri 
cans,  tired  of  playing  soldier,  and,  after  arrangement 
with  his  fellows,  started  a  chorus  of  defiant  yells,  and 
holding  out  their  caps  as.  if  about  to  move  from  their 
cover  and  rush  forward,  drew  the  full  fire  of  the  sav 
ages,  who  then,  pretending  to  be  panic-stricken,  rushed 
back  into  the  works,  crawling,  climbing,  or  sneaking 
in  at  various  points. 


1/4         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

The  answer  to  this  feint  from  the  riflemen  was  a 
loud  guffaw  all  along  our  line.  Instead  of  leaping 
up  and  giving  pursuit,  some  of  the  men  laid  their 
guns  against  the  trees  or  on  the  ground,  indulging 
in  a  long,  loud  laugh.  Getting  out  their  tobacco, 
they  enjoyed  a  chew  and  lighted  their  pipes,  while 
others  looked  their  arms  over  to  see  if  everything 
was  in  good  order.  Exchanging  winks  and  jokes, 
and  jeering  at  the  unseen  foe  inside  the  breastworks, 
they  invited  them  to  come  out  again,  but  they  them 
selves  stirred  not  a  foot.  They  knew  well  that  they 
were  well  supported  by  the  whole  of  the  light  corps 
near  at  hand.  By  and  by  a  much  smaller  part  of  the 
Tories  and  savages,  though  jeered  at,  apparently  at 
tempted  the  same  old  trick  once  and  again.  Never 
theless,  they  kept  themselves  so  well  under  cover 
that  it  was  evident  that  this  time  they  were  trying  to 
find  out  our  movements  and  strategy.  For  this  rea 
son,  the  riflemen  made  it  so  hot  for  them  that  they 
could  learn  little  or  nothing,  and  soon  crawled  back 
into  the  fortifications.  Thus  for  several  hours  our 
sharpshooters  kept  the  enemy  penned  up  within 
their  works  and  occupied.  Yet  they  made  no  change 
in  front,  nor  did  Hand's  corps  advance  any  nearer. 
After  much  firing  and  plenty  of  smoke,  nothing  of 
note  seemed  to  be  done. 

But  by  this  time  Sullivan  had  made  all  his  plans. 
He  expected  to  beat  the  enemy  and  start  them  on  the 
run.  The  only  line  of  retreat  for  the  allied  British, 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS      1/5 

red  and  white,  on  the  left  was  between  the  hill  and  the 
river  up  through  Newtown  to  the  northwest,  toward 
the  great  plain  on  which  the  city  of  Elmira  now 
stands.  To  head  off  the  enemy's  flight  by  this  route, 
Sullivan  sent  Ogden's  division  forward  on  the 
left. 

In  the  centre  and  front,  beyond  the  riflemen  along 
the  creek  and  Hand's  light  troops  just  behind  them, 
he  kept  Maxwell's  brigade  as  a  reserve  in  the  rear. 
Ordering  Colonel  Proctor  to  post  his  nine  guns  on  a 
piece  of  rising  ground  just  over  against  the  angle  of 
the  breastworks,  so  as  to  enfilade  both  lines,  he  had 
him  wait  an  hour  before  opening  fire,  expecting  to  do 
the  heaviest  work  of  battle  on  the  hill  by  a  flank 
attack  on  the  right.  Believing  that  the  Indians 
could  not  long  stand  the  bombshells  and  grapeshot, 
Sullivan  hoped  to  encircle  them  in  their  flight  up  the 
valley.  For  this  work  his  main  reliance  was  on  Poor's 
New  Hampshire  men,  with  Dubois  for  support  on 
the  extreme  right  and  Clinton's  brigade  in  the  rear. 
Poor's  riflemen  were  to  scatter  in  front  to  clear  the 
woods  of  ambuscade  and  to  fire  as  skirmishers  ;  for 
Poor,  like  Wayne  at  Stony  Point,  hoped  to  gain  the 
mountain  in  silence  and  then  dash  upon  the  enemy 
with  fixed  bayonets. 

It  was  Sullivan's  ardent  hope  that  Poor  and  Du 
bois  could  make  the  detour  in  time  to  strike  the 
decisive  blow ;  but  fighting  a  battle  in  an  unmapped 
and  unsurveyed  wilderness  is  not  like  a  game  of  chess, 


1/6         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

and  time  is  an  uncertain  factor.  In  a  country 
thoroughly  surveyed,  where  every  road,  house,  barn, 
and  windmill  may  be  down  on  the  map,  and  all  dis 
tances  accurately  known,  a  general  who  fails  to  arrive 
at  the  time  ordered  may  be  courtmartialled.  But  in  a 
wilderness,  how  can  one  gauge  the  progress  of  soldiers 
who  may  meet  an  unknown  swamp  ?  Wading  waist 
deep  in  mud  and  water  is  not  like  tramping  over  an 
asphalt  pavement. 

Sullivan  allowed  sixty  minutes  for  the  flanking 
column  to  march  around  to  the  extreme  right  and  up 
the  hill,  so  as  to  strike  the  enemy  in  the  rear.  Had  it 
not  been  for  the  terrible  nature  of  the  swamp,  which 
delayed  the  movement  of  the  flanking  column,  the 
battle  would  have  resulted  in  a  much  more  decisive 
victory.  "  Time  and  tide  wait  for  no  man,"  but  a 
swamp  makes  men  wait  for  it.  Instead  of  being  one 
hour,  the  flanking  corps  was  much  longer  in  flounder 
ing  through  the  morass.  At  last  the  men  had  pulled 
their  way  through  the  bushes,  and,  crossing  the  creek 
flowing  into  the  main  stream,  passing  through  the 
Indian  village  and  then  fording  Baldwin's  Creek 
proper,  they  formed  in  line  of  battle  and  began  the 
climb  of  the  mountain.  For  tired  men  on  a  sultry 
day,  this  meant  pull  and  tug  with  much  loss  of  breath. 
Yet  Poor,  who  had  already  heard  Proctor's  guns  open 
ing  on  his  distant  left,  cheered  on  his  men.  Stream 
ing  with  perspiration  they  hurried  up  the  hill,  panting 
like  driven  stags. 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS      1 77 

Two  regiments  in  this  unknown  country  got  some 
what  farther  off  on  the  right  than  Poor  had  planned, 
and  Dubois  being  still  a  greater  distance  to  the  right, 
as  was  proper,  Colonel  Reid's  Second  New  Hampshire 
Regiment,  on  the  extreme  left  and  lower  down  the  hill, 
was  somewhat  separated  from  the  others  by  a  danger 
ous  distance,  while  Colonel  Dearborn's  Third  New 
Hampshire,  perhaps  having  easier  ground  to  march 
on,  got  farther  up  and  nearer  the  crest,  and  was  con 
siderably  in  the  advance.  It  was  a  terribly  hot  day, 
and  the  ground  was  frightfully  rough.  There,  at 
about  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  on  that  Sunday  of 
August  29th,  a  day  most  decisive  in  American  history, 
we  leave  them  for  a  moment,  to  return  to  the  rifles, 
muskets,  cannon,  and  coehorn  of  the  main  body,  and 
the  brave  hearts  behind  them. 

When  Sullivan's  watch  told  him  it  was  three 
o'clock,  he  ordered  Hand  to  have  his  men  ready. 
They  were  to  advance  and  charge  immediately  after 
the  artillery  should  cease  firing.  He  then  gave  the 
signal  to  Proctor.  At  once,  the  whole  battery  of 
nine  pieces  opened  with  a  roar  that  seemed  to  rend 
the  mountains.  The  two  bomb-howitzers  were  posted 
in  the  centre  and  flanked  by  the  six  pounders  and 
light  guns.  At  first,  the  three  and  six  pounders  sent 
in  solid  shot,  aiming  at  the  works;  but  later,  when  the 
enemy  were  visible,  the  gunners,  sighting  their  pieces 
carefully,  poured  in  grape  and  canister.  The  little 
coehorn,  kicking  itself  over  each  time  after  the  dis- 


THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

charge,  threw  its  bombs  neatly  within  the  angles, 
while  the  howitzers,  delivering  their  five  and  a  half 
inch  shells,  quickly  knocked  to  pieces  the  house- 
bastions.  Exploding  within  the  works,  the  bursting 
bombs  made  it  impossible  for  the  Indians  to  hold 
together  without  seeking  cover  farther  back  in  the 
woods.  Even  there,  the  idea  of  missiles  that  could 
not  only  kill  you  from  the  front  but  tear  you  to 
pieces  from  behind  and  on  all  sides,  up,  down,  and 
around,  was  too  terrifying  to  bear.  The  ripping  and 
tearing  of  the  tree  branches  above,  and  the  explosion 
of  bombs  over  their  heads,  sending  down  a  rain  of 
iron,  was  too  much  for  the  redman's  nerves.  One 
Indian,  in  later  life  describing  his  sensations,  declared 
that  it  seemed  constantly  as  if  the  heavens  must  fall 
flat  and  crush  him  and  everybody,  and  he  wondered 
every  moment  that  they  did  not. 

Now,  there  is  a  difference  between  physical  and 
moral  courage. 

The  savage  Indian  can  fight  bravely  from  under 
cover,  especially  if  he  can  hide  and  slowly  sneak  up 
to  his  victim,  or  rush  at  him  when  unarmed  or  with 
empty  musket.  He  can  bear  hunger,  cold,  and  pain. 
He  can  stand  the  torture  of  his  enemy  without  a 
groan.  In  this,  perhaps,  he  excels  the  white  man, 
at  whom  he  laughs  because  his  white  enemy  in 
agony  shows  emotion.  Yet  the  savage  Indian  has 
not  the  moral  courage  to  look  into  the  muzzle  of 
cannon.  He  cannot  face  an  open  fire,  or  stand  in 


HE  LED  THE  CHEERING.' 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS       1/9 

ranks  under  discipline,  while  bombshells  are  burst 
ing  around  him. 

Brant,  the  chief,  at  first  tried  to  hold  his  terrified 
followers  together.  Dressed  in  Indian  costume,  and 
conspicuous  by  the  feathers  in  his  head-dress,  he 
brandished  his  tomahawk,  and  moved  up  and  down 
among  his  tribesmen,  cheering  and  encouraging  them 
to  hold  their  ground.  Many  a  rifleman  that  day  tried 
to  bring  down  this  proud  chief.  He  was  known 
throughout  all  the  land  for  his  intellectual  ability 
and  physical  vigor.  His  sister,  Molly  Brant,  had 
been  the  mate  of  Sir  William  Johnson.  To  have 
killed  him  would  have  added  mightily  to  the  reputa 
tion  of  a  rifleman.  Yet  he  was  unhurt.  He  seemed 
to  bear  a  charmed  life,  as  if  protected  by  the  Great 
Spirit.  Although  his  clothes  were  pierced,  no  bullet 
drank  his  blood. 

Nevertheless,  as  Proctor's  gunners  stripped  to 
their  work,  and  poured  in  unceasingly  a  rapid  fire, 
made  more  effective  by  the  cool  aiming  of  the 
officers,  the  slaughter  was  terrible.  According  to 
Indian  custom,  no  wounded  were  left  on  the  ground. 
Only  those  corpses  which  could  not  be  hastily  carried 
off  were  visible.  Just  before  the  battle,  Butler 
had  scores  of  canoes  moored  in  the  Chemung  River, 
to  bear  away  the  wounded  and,  as  far  as  possible, 
the  dead.  The  witnesses  on  the  ground  after  the 
battle  testified  to  the  grass  and  timber  looking  as 
though  smeared  with  buckets  of  blood.  The  crash- 


l8O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

ing  of  the  branches,  the  horrible  sounds  and  odors 
out  of  the  screeching  and  bursting  iron,  so  unnerved 
the  Indians  that  Brant  saw,  and  Butler  knew,  that 
something  must  soon  be  done  to  move  them  to 
activities  that  would  cheer  them,  or  the  day  would 
be  utterly  lost.  What  should  they  do  ?  It  would 
be  useless  to  make  a  sortie,  for  two  brigades  of 
alert  and  eager  American  soldiers  lay  in  front  of 
them,  all  ready  for  that  assault  which  they  knew 
would  take  place  when  the  cannon  ceased  firing. 
What  sign  of  hope  was  there  for  the  British  cause  ? 

This  came  unexpectedly  from  the  left  flank,  and 
in  the  nick  of  time.  On  the  hilltop,  the  Indian 
sentinels  had  caught  sight  of  the  gleaming  rifles 
of  Poor's  skirmishers.  Waiting  only  for  a  moment, 
to  be  sure  that  the  enemy  were  in  force  —  a  fact 
which  was  quickly  made  certain  by  the  whole  bri 
gade's  forming  in  line  of  battle  after  crossing  the 
creek  near  the  deserted  Indian  village  at  the  base 
of  the  hill  —  they  sent  courier  after  courier  to  Brant, 
telling  of  this  imminent  danger. 

Receiving  this  as  joyful  news  rather  than  with 
alarm,  Brant  at  once  led  off  about  half  his  warriors 
on  the  run.  Reaching  the  slope  of  the  nearest  hill, 
his  hope  turned  to  exultation.  Fiercer  yet  was  his 
joy  when,  by  half-naked  runners  dripping  with 
perspiration,  he  was  informed  that  one  regiment  of 
soldiers  had  got  separated  from  the  others,  and  were 
toiling,  half  out  of  breath,  up  the  rough  slope.  In- 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS       l8l 

deed,  they  were  at  that  moment  within  five  minutes' 
striking  distance.  At  once  giving  silent  signal  to 
his  followers  to  form  a  semicircle,  so  as  to  enclose 
Reid's  regiment,  Brant  raised  a  yell  that  was  re 
peated  from  five  hundred  throats,  until  to  the  white 
men  earth  seemed  to  have  opened  and  the  forest 
to  be  suddenly  populated  with  demons.  Hot  and 
wilted  by  the  sultry  and  lifeless  air,  with  their  breath 
nearly  spent,  the  New  Hampshire  men  looked  up 
and  found  themselves  nearly  surrounded  by  a  force 
three  times  their  number. 

The  prospect  was  gloomy  enough.  Had  the 
Indians  not  been  so  sure  of  victory,  or  their  nerves 
not  been  demoralized  by  the  bombshells  from  which 
they  had  just  fled,  they  might  have,  by  their  first 
fire,  decimated  the  little  regiment.  As  matter  of 
fact,  from  the  hill's  crest  they  fired  too  high,  for 
the  most  part  down  and  over  the  heads  of  the  New 
Hampshire  boys  below  them. 

What  should  Reid  do  ?  The  thin  line  of  riflemen 
skirmishers,  who  on  discovering  the  foe  began  firing 
up  hill,  seemed  not  to  check  the  redskins  for  a 
moment.  His  men's  guns  were  empty.  Their 
bayonets  were  in  their  scabbards.  Must  he  retreat 
and  fall  back  on  Clinton's  reinforcements,  too  far, 
it  might  be,  in  the  rear  for  speedy  help  ?  Where 
was  Dearborn  ?  There  was  no  chance  to  communi 
cate  with  his  superior  officer,  Poor,  who  was  too 
far  over  on  the  right,  with  Indians  in  between. 


1 82    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Should  he  make  a  desperate  charge  against  over 
whelming  numbers,  and  run  the  risks  ?  For  a  mo 
ment,  visions  of  their  own  scalps,  fresh  and  bloody, 
hanging  to  dry  in  Iroquois  lodges,  blanched  the 
faces  of  the  New  Hampshire  lads,  but  only  for  a 
moment.  Thought  was  like  lightning.  Decision 
was  instantaneous. 

"  Fix  bayonets  !  "  rang  out  Reid's  order.  Within 
ten  seconds,  the  men  had  ordered  arms,  and  the 
clinking  of  three  hundred  weapons,  as  the  bayonets 
slid  over  the  beads,  and  the  slot,  ring,  and  barrel 
of  each  musket  made  unity,  as  of  a  spear,  was 
over. 

Before  Brant's  savages  could  think  of  reloading, 
came  another  order,  "  Forward,  charge  !  " 

Then,  with  a  wild  cheer,  the  New  Hampshire  men 
dashed  ahead  with  the  cold  steel,  yet  against  heavy 
odds  and  in  fearful  danger.  Though  they  broke  the 
redmen's  defiant  front  and  scattered  them,  these 
quickly  found  shelter  and  began  reloading  and 
firing,  and  down  dropped  the  charging  Continentals, 
until  a  dozen  lay  helpless  and  bleeding.  Meanwhile, 
the  riflemen,  who  had  moved  to  the  right  and  left  as 
flankers,  kept  the  savages  from  re-forming  their 
curving  line,  and  made  them  keep  their  distance. 
Yet  though  the  New  Hampshire  men,  to  gain  their 
breath,  stopped  to  load  and  bravely  stood  up  to  the 
fight,  the  superiority  in  numbers  told  fearfully  against 
them.  In  a  very  few  minutes,  over  thirty  of  the  men 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS       183 

from  the  Old  Granite  State  lay  dead  or  wounded.  It 
was  still  what  the  Dutch  taught  us  to  call  a  "  verloren 
hoop  "  —  a  forlorn  hope. 

Just  at  that  moment  help  came  from  an  unexpected 
quarter. 

Colonel  Dearborn,  with  the  Third  New  Hampshire, 
having  reached  his  post  farther  up  the  hill,  and  miss 
ing  Reid's  regiment,  heard  firing  behind  him.  In 
stantly  divining  the  situation,  and  suspecting  that  the 
flankers  were  themselves  flanked,  he  took  the  respon 
sibility  of  action.  "  About  face  !  "  was  his  order.  It 
was  quickly  given  and  superbly  executed.  Forward 
on  a  run,  until  within  firing  distance,  and  then  lining 
up  handsomely,  these  fresh  boys  from  the  old  Granite 
State  struck  the  rear  of  Brant's  forces,  very  soon 
after  Reid  had  ordered  a  charge.  Here  the  Conti 
nentals  had  the  heaviest  musketry  battle  of  the  day. 
Being  able  to  fire  two  volleys,  they  laid  many  a  red 
skin  low.  By  this  time,  Clinton  had  hurried  forward 
Gansevoort's  regiment,  while  the  other  forces  near 
at  hand  pressed  Brant's  in  front  and  rear,  and  the 
proud  chieftain,  seeing  the  danger  of  capture,  sounded 
the  retreat. 

When  Butler  saw  the  red  clouds  of  beaten  Senecas 
flying  toward  Newtown,  he  knew  that  the  game  was 
up,  and  had  ordered  his  men  on  the  run  to  save  them 
selves.  Soon  the  whole  host,  red  and  white,  Johnson 
Greens  and  painted  Tories,  were  streaming  pell-mell 
through  the  town  and  corn-fields,  and  over  the  ford 


184         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

of  the  Chemung.  In  swift  canoes,  the  wounded  were 
paddled  up  the  river  out  of  sight. 

By  this  time,  Hand's  riflemen  and  light  troops  had 
charged  with  cheers,  leaped  over  the  breastworks, 
and  were  well  forward  in  pursuit.  Some  of  Poor's 
men,  being  around  on  the  right  and  far  ahead  of 
them,  tried  to  intercept  the  fugitives,  but  they  broke 
with  impetuosity  through  the  thin  line  and  escaped, 
though  the  commander  of  his  Majesty's  forces, 
Colonel  John  Butler,  came  very  near  being  taken 
prisoner.  Clinton's  infantry  moved  forward  more 
leisurely,  burning  the  Indian  villages  both  east  and 
west  of  the  intrenchments.  At  six  o'clock  all  the 
army  gathered  at  the  Indian  town  of  Newtown. 

Now  came  the  opportunity  of  the  gallant  Irishman, 
General  Hand,  of  the  light  brigade. 

"  Pull  out  the  stars  and  stripes,  and  let  the  Conti 
nentals  give  three  cheers,  General  Hand,"  said  the 
commander-in-chief.  "  Men,  here  is  one  of  the  first 
flags  made  by  order  of  the  Continental  Congress. 
Let  us  salute  it  with  a  long-metre  doxology  of  cheers. 
Give  your  orders,  general." 

"  Ay,  sir,  general,"  said  Hand ;  and  as  he  sat  on  his 
horse  it  seemed  as  if  the  war-steed  was  enjoying  the 
thrill  and  excitement  of  the  moment  with  its  master. 

Then  turning  to  the  dust-stained  soldiers  of  the 
regiments,  all  ranged  in  line,  but  with  eyes  flashing 
and  eager  to  try  their  throats  in  patriotic  vigor,  Gen 
eral  Hand  cried :  — 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS       185 

"  Three  times  three,  my  gallant  victors  !  Once  for 
the  flag,  once  for  the  Congress,  and  once  for  our 
commander." 

Then,  pulling  out  from  his  bosom  the  flag  made  by 
Betsey  Ross  and  given  him  by  Mrs.  Eyre,  he  led  the 
cheering,  which  made  the  welkin  ring. 

Breaking  ranks,  camp  and  a  rich  vegetable  supper 
were  now  in  order. 

How  the  battle-field  looked  and  what  the  surgeons 
had  to  do  was  told  very  clearly  in  Claes  Vrooman's 
letter  to  his  father  at  Schenectady.  At  Newtown, 
he  found  quill  pens,  ink,  paper,  and  apparently  all 
the  accessories  of  Butler's  headquarters.  Before  the 
torch  was  applied,  he  had  made  spoil  of  the  station 
ery,  and  part  of  what  he  wrote  is  as  follows  :  — 

"  DEAR  FATHER  :  We  have  had  a  great  battle,  and 
I  have  been  in  the  smoke  as  well  as  under  fire  six 
hours.  I  never  knew  of  so  much  powder  burned  at 
one  time,  in  all  my  life.  '  So  much  mustard  to  so 
little  meat '  —  for  our  butcher's  bill  is  quite  small. 
Parr's  riflemen  opened  the  battle,  and  amused  the 
enemy  all  the  morning  in  front,  spoiling  all  their 
plans  of  entrapping  our  army  into  passing  a  line  of 
intrenchments,  which  they  had  cunningly  covered 
with  green  boughs  and  trees.  While  we  were  useful 
in  front,  without  being  able  to  accomplish  much  on 
men  hidden  behind  breastworks,  the  New  Hamp 
shire  men  with  Clinton's  brigade  were  sent  around 


1 86    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

up  the  hill  on  the  right,  to  strike  the  enemy  on  the 
flank,  while  the  artillery  was  ordered  up  to  a  little 
rise  of  ground,  sending  bombs  and  round  shot  over 
our  heads  as  we  lay  on  the  ground.  There  was  some 
fighting  on  our  flank,  and,  indeed,  the  New  Hamp 
shire  boys  did  the  hardest  fighting ;  but  Brant,  think 
ing  that  his  Indians  might  be  surrounded,  retreated, 
and  Butler's  forces  of  white  men  soon  followed  in 
their  tracks.  I  have  been  over  the  ground  with  the  sur 
geons  and  must  tell  you  about  the  dead  and  wounded, 
but  especially  about  the  black  prisoner,  who,  to  my 
delight  and  joy,  actually  brought  me  a  letter  from 
your  own  daughter. 

"She  says  nothing  about  my  wife,  Trintje,  except 
that  she  is  probably  at  the  Tuscarora  village  of  Core- 
organel,  in  the  valley  near  the  southern  end  of  Lake 
Cayuga." 

The  story-teller  would  add  that,  during  the  battle, 
Colonel  Van  Cortlandt  was  standing  near  a  tree 
directing  his  troops.  Catching  sight  of  his  well- 
known  enemy  and  recognizing  him,  the  chieftain 
Brant  called  to  his  side  one  of  his  favorite  marksmen. 

"  There,"  said  he,  "  is  a  commander  of  five  hun 
dred  men.  Aim  carefully  and  bring  him  down." 

The  man,  whose  gun  was  empty  at  that  moment, 
loaded  with  particular  care,  for  the  colonel,  resting 
his  hands  on  his  sword,  the  point  of  which  was  on 
the  ground,  seemed  not  likely  to  stir  for  a  minute 


THE    DECISIVE    BATTLE    IN    THE    WILDERNESS       l8/ 

or  two.  Then,  sighting  his  piece,  and  deliberately 
taking  aim,  the  sharpshooter  pulled  the  trigger. 
The  ball  struck  the  tree,  not  more  than  two  inches 
above  the  top  of  the  colonel's  cocked  hat,  filling 
the  back  of  his  neck  with  fragments  of  bark,  caus 
ing  him  to  shrug  his  shoulders  and  bend  forward 
to  shake  out  the  debris,  but  this  was  all.  He  was 
unhurt. 

Years  afterward,  when  Brant  and  Colonel  Van 
Cortlandt  sat  together  as  guests  at  the  same  dinner 
in  Albany,  Brant  asked  his  companion,  — 

"  How  near  did  a  certain  bullet  come  to  your  head 
when  you  were  standing  in  front  of  a  tree,  during 
the  battle  of  Newtown  ?  " 

"  I  should  say  within  two  inches,"  was  the  reply. 

"Well,  I  am  not  surprised,"  said  Brant;  "for  the 
man  who  fired  at  you  that  day  was  my  best  marks 
man,  and  I  directed  him ;  but  now  I  am  glad  he  didn't 
hit  you,"  said  Brant,  laughing. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

AFTER  THE  BATTLE IN  THE  CHEMUNG  VALLEY 

IT  was  a  terribly  disheartened  band  of  beaten  men 
that  Sullivan's  light-armed  troops  drove  before 
them.  The  dead  and  wounded,  put  in  light  canoes, 
manned  by  the  most  skilful  paddlers,  were  moved  up 
the  stream  so  rapidly  that  they  were  soon  beyond 
pursuit,  while  on  land  those  who  were  fleeing  had 
but  one  idea,  —  the  saving  of  their  lives.  Without 
stopping  in  their  village  at  Newtown,  they  sped  on 
with  their  women  and  children. 

Now  that  the  victory  had  been  achieved,  Sullivan 
was  able  to  send  back  his  howitzers  and  two  of  the 
heavy  cannon.  At  this  order,  shouts  of  joy  went  up 
not  only  from  the  artillerymen  and  the  soldiers  who 
had  to  drag  them,  but  from  the  pioneers  who  knew 
that  there  would  now  be  less  road  and  bridge  work 
and  haulage  through  the  forest  and  the  mire.  Never 
theless,  since  they  might  meet  with  fortified  towns  on 
the  way,  and  possibly  more  breastworks,  the  four 
light  pieces  and  the  little  coehorn  were  ordered  to  go 
forward.  At  this  order,  there  was  not  a  little  private 

188 


AFTER    THE    BATTLE  189 

growling.  One  man  declared  that  to  take  cannon  to 
Canandaigua  was  like  carrying  a  mountain  through 
the  forest. 

But  a  far  more  serious  duty  now  faced  the  army. 
To  do  without  cannon  was  delight ;  to  go  forward 
lacking  a  good  supply  of  meat  and  bread  was  grief. 
Touch  a  soldier  in  the  stomach  and  you  rouse  a  pro 
test  from  the  lowest  foundations,  for  even  an  army, 
like  a  rattlesnake,  moves  on  its  belly.  A  man  is  what 
he  has  eaten.  When  the  men  were  called  on  to  make 
the  sacrifice  and  enter  upon  short  rations,  some  asked, 
"  How  can  a  man  live  on  succotash  ?  "  For,  from  this 
time  until  they  should  return,  a  half  pound  of  flour 
and  a  half  pound  of  beef  a  day  were  to  be  the  rule  and 
the  ration. 

Nevertheless  it  was  a  question  between  forward 
with  glory  on  half  rations,  or  backward  in  disgrace 
on  full  stomachs.  Though  the  enemy'  had  been 
beaten  in  the  field,  the  main  purpose  of  the  expedition, 
in  destroying  the  crops  and  desolating  Iroquoisia,  had 
not  yet  been  accomplished.  Sullivan  was  not  the 
man  to  turn  back  when  his  work  was  but  half  done ; 
and  the  army  was  worthy  of  its  commander. 

It  was  a  fine  sight  when,  after  announcement  being 
made  in  general  orders,  and  permission  given  to  all 
who  would  not  accept  the  reduction  in  rations  to  re 
turn,  not  a  man  retreated.  All  stepped  forward,  and 
from  the  whole  Continental  line  went  up  three  rous 
ing  cheers.  It  was  a  soldier's  vote  to  "  carry  the  war 


THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

into  Africa,"  and  live  off  the  country.  Yet  it  seemed 
easy  to  do  this  in  a  country  where  corn  stalks  were 
eighteen  feet  high  and  corn-cobs  a  foot  and  a  half 
long.  They  were  to  pass  from  a  succession  of  woods, 
mountains,  and  swamps,  into  a  level  country  dotted 
with  lakes. 

How  it  all  seemed  to  our  young  volunteer,  Herman 
Clute,  may  be  learned  from  his  letter  to  his  mother, 
written  from  Canandaigua. 

"  SEPTEMBER  10,  1779. 

"  DEAR  MOTHER  :  I  have  gone  through  a  battle,  and 
have  come  out  unhurt.  If  I  had  ever  been  told,  when 
at  home  in  Dorp,  that  so  many  thousand  bullets  could 
be  fired  by  men  used  to  guns  and  yet  so  little  harm 
done,  I  should  not  have  believed  it.  I  find  that  calmly 
shooting  at  a  target,  on  a  fair  day,  at  home,  with 
plenty  of  time  to  take  aim,  is  a  very  different  thing 
from  fighting  when  excited  in  the  woods,  and  in  a 
cloud  of  smoke,  where  you  see  an  Indian  dodging 
about  one  minute  and  find  him  gone  out  of  sight  the 
next. 

"  On  Sunday  morning,  August  29th,  we  came  to  a 
place  in  the  woods  with  a  ridge  of  hills  which  had 
been  fortified  by  the  enemy  and  covered  up  with  green 
stuff.  When  General  Hand  found  it  out,  he  sent 
word  to  Sullivan,  who  took  his  time  and  arranged  the 
plan  of  battle.  We  had  to  wait  several  hours,  while 
the  riflemen  in  front  along  a  creek  kept  up  a  lively 
cracking,  though  they  could  see  very  little  to  fire  at. 


AFTER    THE    BATTLE  I 91 

Indeed,  from  about  eleven  o'clock  until  five  in  the 
afternoon,  there  was  a  tremendous  amount  of  lead  shot 
at  us  by  the  king's  people  from  inside  their  lines, 
while  our  folks  kept  up  the  fire  steadily.  The  New 
Hampshire  men  and  New  Yorkers  were  sent  far  off 
to  the  right  up  the  hill,  and  they  were  the  lucky  fel 
lows,  for  they  were  the  only  ones  in  our  army  that 
saw  any  real  fighting.  In  fact,  that  was  the  one  time 
in  the  battle  when  men  got  close  enough  to  see  each 
other's  faces. 

"  While  they  were  gone  from  us,  our  artillery  was 
also  playing  on  the  enemy,  and  the  noise  was  deaf 
ening.  At  first,  I  was  mightily  interested  in  seeing 
the  red  jets  of  fire  leaping  from  the  mouths  of  the 
guns,  and  listening  to  hear  the  bombs  burst  in  the 
enemy's  camp,  for  I  could  see  nothing  very  far 
ahead  of  the  cannon.  But  by  and  by,  I  got  so  tired 
of  waiting,  hour  after  hour,  doing  nothing  and  with 
out  any  dinner,  —  for  we  were  kept  in  line  to  be 
ready  at  an  instant  to  charge  after  the  artillery  had 
stopped  firing,  —  that  I  fell  asleep,  and  so  did  several 
of  the  other  men.  Indeed,  after  the  first  excitement 
was  over,  we  felt  tired ;  but,  about  half  past  four  or 
five,  we  heard  what  was  music  to  our  ears,  —  the 
horn  sounding  the  order  to  move  forward.  We 
waded  through  the  creek,  rushed  up  over  the  in- 
trenchments  and  after  the  enemy,  whom  we  could 
see  here  and  there  in  the  distance  through  the  woods 
and  at  full  speed.  But  we  never  caught  up  with 


IQ2         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

them.  They  seemed  to  run  like  deer,  and  nearly  all 
got  away  safely. 

"  It  turned  out  that  the  New  Hampshire  troops 
and  Clinton's  brigade  had  taken  so  much  time  to 
get  through  the  swamp  that  they  were  too  slow, 
while  Proctor's  men  were  too  fast.  The  bombshells 
had  got  in  among  the  enemy  so  early  that,  when  the 
retreat  began,  there  was  no  one  to  head  them  off. 
I  do  not  think  that  I  saw  more  than  four  or  five 
dead  men,  all  Indians,  lying  on  the  ground  as  we 
passed  by ;  but  there  were  places  where  it  looked 
as  if  the  shells  had  exploded  among  groups  and 
knots  of  men,  for  the  trees  and  grass  were  dread 
fully  bloody.  We  could  see  where  they  had  pulled 
off  and  away  the  dead  and  wounded  down  to  the 
river,  to  get  them  into  canoes.  The  doctors  say 
that  about  fifteen  dead  Indians  were  found,  and  two 
Tory  prisoners  taken,  but  that  only  five  of  our  men 
were  killed  and  about  thirty-five  wounded.  Yet  I 
cannot  get  over  it,  that  with  all  the  firing  in  front 
of  the  breastworks,  and  with  the  hard  fighting  on 
the  hill,  in  fact  about  seven  hours,  more  or  less, 
of  shooting,  so  few  on  our  side  were  hurt. 

"  I  think  that  the  Indians  on  the  hill  must  have 
been  made  nervous  by  the  bombshells,  for  they 
fired  over  the  heads  of  our  men  down  below  them. 
On  the  low  ground  where  we  were,  what  with  a 
half  a  peck  of  iron  scattering  among  them  every 
time  the  coehorn  or  a  howitzer  opened  its  mouth, 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  193 

while  our  side  was  protected  behind  the  banks  of 
the  creek,  the  Tories  and  Indians  could  do  little  to 
harm  us.  Hardly  anybody  on  our  side  fronting  the 
great  works  was  hurt,  and  the  killed  and  wounded 
were  almost  wholly  among  the  New  Hampshire 
men. 

"I  do  not  like  the  way  our  men  act  after  the 
battle.  Some  of  the  riflemen  are  rough  fellows. 
As  soon  as  they  got  over  the  intrenchments  they 
rushed  right  at  the  dead  Indians,  whipped  out  their 
knives,  ran  them  around  their  foreheads  and  pulled 
off  their  scalps.  They  washed  these  in  the  creek, 
and  now  they  are  hanging  them  on  sticks  set  near 
fires.  The  owners  of  these  horrible  relics  seem  to 
be  as  proud  of  their  property  as  if  it  were  jewellery. 
One  man  secured  three,  and  another  boasted  that  he 
had  taken  in  his  time  twenty-seven. 

"  Yet  this  is  not  all.  I  saw  two  men  bending  over 
the  biggest  of  the  dead  Indians,  whom  one  of  the 
riflemen  had  already  scalped.  While  one  held  up 
the  redman's  leg,  another  one  took  his  knife  and 
skinned  it  from  thigh  to  ankle.  Wondering  what 
in  the  world  he  wanted  to  do  with  the  hide  off  an 
Indian's  leg,  he  replied :  '  Why,  sonny,  I  am  going 
to  tan  it  and  make  a  pair  of  boots  out  of  it.  My 
comrade,  here,  has  a  pair  of  leggings  made  of  tanned 
Indian,  and  I'm  going  to  be  up  with  him.'  So  he 
skinned  the  other  leg,  and,  having  already  stuck  the 
scalp  in  his  belt,  walked  off  with  his  bundle  of  raw- 
o 


194    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

hide  Scalping  the  redmen  seems  to  be  as  common 
with  our  frontiersmen  as  with  the  Indians  themselves. 

"  After  pursuit  was  over,  our  men  went  round  the 
field  and  found  a  great  many  packs  and  knapsacks, 
blankets,  tomahawks,  knives,  and  other  things  belong 
ing  to  the  Tories  and  Indians.  Butler's  papers, 
jewellery,  and  coat  were  found  and  taken  to  the 
general.  After  they  buried  our  men,  they  kindled 
big  log  fires  over  the  top  of  the  ground.  When  I 
asked  why  they  did  this,  they  said  it  was  quite  com 
mon  for  the  Indians  to  dig  up  the  dead  and  shoot 
arrows  into  the  bodies,  and  they  wished  to  hide  the 
place  of  burial.  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  some  of  our 
own  men,  especially  those  who  lost  relatives  in  the 
massacre,  tell  stories  of  their  doing  the  same  thing 
to  dead  Indians.  Indeed,  all  along  our  march  to 
Canandaigua,  our  men  found  fresh  graves,  which 
they  usually  opened.  They  found  in  them  the 
bodies  of  men  wounded  in  the  battle. 

"  The  Seneca  village  here,  called  '  Newtown,'  was 
surrounded  on  every  side  with  fields  of  corn,  beans, 
pumpkins,  squashes,  and  other  vegetables.  As  we 
rested  the  next  day,  we  had  good  eating.  From 
this  time  forth,  I  suppose,  we  must  be  vegetarians, 
for  General  Sullivan  in  his  orders  showed  that  we 
could  have  only  a  half  pound  of  flour  and  a  half 
pound  of  meat  a  day.  All  who  did  not  like  short 
rations  and  wanted  to  go  home  could  do  so,  but  not 
one  turned  back.  Indeed,  all  stepped  forward  and 


AFTER    THE    BATTLE  195 

gave  three  ringing  cheers  for  the  general  and  the 
country.  Nevertheless,  when  we  are  not  near  corn 
fields,  we  have  to  lie  down  hungry.  Our  poor 
horses  seem  to  suffer  worse  than  their  masters. 
That  night,  the  four  heavy  guns,  the  wounded,  all 
the  wagons,  were  sent  back  to  the  boats  to  be  taken 
to  Tioga  Point. 

"  Claes  Vrooman  read  me  the  letter  which  his 
sister  in  captivity  had  sent  him  by  the  negro  boy 
Drusus.  He  was  found  at  the  far  end  of  the  battle 
field  and  scared  almost  white  by  the  effect  of  the 
bombs.  Our  men  passed  over  him  in  their  pursuit, 
but  afterward  found  him  and  a  Tory,  who  also  had 
a  black  face.  They  thought  the  Tory  was  a  negro, 
until  they  noticed  his  hair.  Then,  pulling  open  his 
shirt,  they  found  he  was  a  white  man.  Though  our 
men  threatened  both  of  the  prisoners,  they  did  not 
hurt  them.  When  brought  into  the  presence  of 
General  Sullivan,  the  negro  told  how  fearfully  the 
Indians  were  demoralized  by  the  bombs.  Inquir 
ing  for  Vrooman,  he  delivered  him  the  birch-bark 
letter. 

"When,  on  the  3ist,  we  again  started  to  march, 
the  right  column  went  over  the  hills  some  distance 
from  the  river,  but  the  left  column  and  the  cannon 
took  the  route  by  the  river.  Oh,  what  a  beautiful 
country  we  did  pass  through !  As  usual,  we  burned 
all  the  Indian  houses  and  cut  down  the  corn.  At 
a  point  between  two  streams,  we  came  to  a  pretty 


196         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Indian  town  called  '  Kanawaholla,'  and  up  the  river 
saw  some  boats  full  of  escaping  Indians.  You  would 
be  surprised  at  the  plunder  which  we  find  in  those 
Indian  houses.  They  were  built  with  the  help  of 
white  men,  for  there  is  a  good  deal  of  split  and 
sawed  timber  in  them,  and  not  a  few  paint  pots  have 
been  emptied  on  them  to  make  them  gay. 

"We  found  many  things  stolen  from  the  settle 
ments  :  feather-beds,  nightgowns  and  caps,  women's 
and  men's  clothes,  and  chests  that  were  filled  with 
table  ware,  pewter  dishes,  and  stuff  of  all  sorts.  I 
have  a  silver  spoon  fashioned  at  the  top  with  the  three- 
cross  arms  of  Amsterdam,  and  marked  'A.  V.  C.,'  and 
under  it  a  sheaf  of  bending  grain.  Could  this  be 
Arendt  van  Curler's  spoon,  which  has  been  in  our 
family  ever  since  his  widow  died  ?  At  any  rate, 
the  end  is  all  worn  off  from  frequent  scraping  out  of 
pots  of  suppawn,  —  which  the  Massachusetts  men 
call  '  hasty  pudding.' 

"The  next  day,  I  think,  was  the  worst  marching 
time  we  have  had  yet.  Just  as  down  at  Tioga  Point 
we  found  a  great  farm  carried  on  by  Queen  Esther, 
so,  near  the  end  of  Seneca  Lake,  was  the  Indian  town 
and  horse-breeding  place  of  her  sister,  Queen  Cath 
erine,  who  has  two  of  the  handsomest  daughters  in 
all  the  land  of  Iroquoisia.  Her  farm  seems,  with 
its  fences,  horses,  colts,  cows,  calves,  hogs,  and  chick 
ens,  more  like  a  stock  farm  on  the  Hudson  River 
than  the  abode  of  savages.  We  have  often  heard 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  197 

of  this  famous  woman,  who  is  a  great  granddaughter 
of  Count  Frontenac,  who,  in  1690,  sent  the  French 
and  Canadian  Indians  on  the  raid  that  destroyed  our 
town  of  Schenectady.  Her  husband  is  a  famous 
Seneca  chief,  and  she  and  he  have  become  quite 
rich  by  breeding  and  selling  the  finest  horses  known 
in  Iroquois  land.  I  was  therefore  quite  anxious  to 
see  her  town  of  forty  big  houses,  of  which  I  had 
heard  much. 

"  But  before  we  got  there,  we  had  to  go  through 
a  most  horrid,  thick,  miry  swamp,  covered  with  water 
from  the  recent  rains,  terribly  dark  from  the  closeness 
of  the  hemlocks,  with  plenty  of  rocks  and  sloughs  and 
swales,  in  which  horses  and  men  floundered  dreadfully. 
Some  of  the  beasts  stuck  fast  and  could  not  get  out, 
and  so  died  there.  Others  lost  their  bags  of  flour  and 
boxes  of  cartridges.  We  must  have  crossed  the  little 
river  in  the  swamp  about  twenty  times.  It  was  seven 
o'clock  in  the  evening  before  even  the  advance  guard 
got  out  of  this  Bear  Swamp,  which  extends  nine  miles. 
On  either  side  was  a  ridge  of  hills,  along  which  the 
main  column  could  march,  but  how  we  ever  got  the 
artillery  through  I  do  not  know.  To-day  the  pioneers 
are  nearly  dead  with  exhaustion,  for  they  had  to  fill 
up  many  of  the  pools  and  holes  full  of  stuff  as  soft 
as  suppawn,  besides  bridging  with  corduroy  a  great 
many  hollows.  Our  brigade  got  out  of  the  wilder 
ness  about  eight  o'clock,  but  Poor's  and  Maxwell's 
did  not  make  camp  till  near  midnight.  Many  of 


198    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

the  men  fell  asleep  by  the  way,  utterly  worn  out,  and 
did  not  join  their  regiments  till  next  day. 

"As  for  Clinton's  soldiers,  being  in  the  rear  guard, 
they  lay  in  the  swamp  all  night,  hungry  and  miser 
able.  Vrooman  tells  me  that  this  dreadful  morass  is 
the  dividing  line  of  the  waters,  those  on  one  side 
going  to  the  Susquehanna,  and  the  other  into  the  St. 
Lawrence.  So  we  shall  follow  the  streams  flowing 
north  hereafter.  There  is  a  great  difference  in  the 
fog-making  power  of  the  streams,  '  according  as  they 
run  toward  Cancer  or  Capricorn,'  as  our  geographer 
Lodge  says. 

"  Here  in  this  swamp,  especially,  is  where  the  king 
of  bears,  the  messenger  of  the  Great  Spirit  and  the 
prophet  of  the  weather,  has  his  lair.  The  Senecas 
send  a  party  every  year  in,  to  watch  him  come  out. 
If  he  sees  his  shadow,  he  stays  out,  and  there  will  be 
early  spring  and  warm  weather.  If  he  does  not,  and 
no  shadow  is  cast,  they  know  it  will  be  a  backward 
spring,  cold  and  raw  for  six  weeks.  So  they  can 
arrange  for  their  crops,  fishing,  hunting,  and  war 
parties. 


CHAPTER    XVII 

QUEEN  CATHERINE'S  TOWN  AND  INDIAN  STAR  LORE 

"  T  TOW  the  Indian  dogs  did  howl  as  we  approached 
1  1  Queen  Catherine's  town  !  It  consisted  of  forty 
houses,  all  large  and  well  built,  with  splendid  corn-fields 
and  orchards  all  around  it.  A  Dutch  family  lived  here 
among  the  Indians,  and  there  were  plenty  of  feather- 
beds  in  the  house,  and  two  of  their  horses  were  in  the 
fields.  The  queen's  palace  was  a  two-storied,  gam- 
brel-roofed  house,  about  thirty  feet  long  and  eighteen 
feet  wide.  Warriors,  squaws,  pappooses,  and  dogs  de 
camped  so  suddenly  that  the  horses,  cows,  calves,  and 
hogs  were  left  behind.  The  baggage  of  many  of  the 
officers  being  still  in  the  swamp,  some  slept  on  feather- 
beds  and  some  on  strips  of  bark  torn  from  the  houses. 
The  next  day  we  hungry  fellows  had  a  banquet,  for 
all  the  cattle  were  barbecued.  No  half  rations  of 
meat  that  day!  Some  of  the  wild  oranges  were  as 
big  as  common  limes.  We  rested  and  feasted,  burned 
the  houses,  and  cut  down  the  trees  and  corn.  It  was 
awful  work,  but,  as  our  chaplain  says,  '  Washington 
is  our  Samuel,  Sullivan  our  Saul,  the  Senecas  and 
Tories  our  Amalekites ;  and,  if  we  catch  Brant  or 

199 


2OO         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Butler,  our  men  will  make  him  as  Agag.'  Some  of 
the  Pennsylvania  riflemen  shouted,  '  Remember  Wyo 
ming,'  as  they  rushed  over  the  breastworks  at 
Newtown. 

"  I  must  tell  you  about  an  old  squaw  that  we  found 
here.  I  was  walking  out  in  the  woods,  and  found  her 
hidden  in  the  bushes.  She  looked  to  be  a  century 
old,  and  as  leathery  looking  as  one  of  Domine  Vroo- 
man's  tomes  of  Bor  or  Voet ;  but,  unlike  the  smooth 
parchment  on  the  books,  her  face  was  puckered  like 
an  apple  baked  too  long,  as  if  every  year  since  her 
fortieth  had  added  a  new  pucker.  I  couldn't  make 
her  understand  anything  I  said,  though  I  knew 
Mohawk  pretty  well ;  but  I  called  one  of  Domine 
Kirkland's  Oneida  Indians,  who  can  rattle  off  sev 
eral  of  the  dialects,  but  every  time  she  shook  her  head 
as  if  she  did  not  understand.  Convinced  that  she 
was  only  shamming,  we  took  her  before  General  Sulli 
van,  and  he  threatened  her  with  punishment  if  she  did 
not  answer,  promising  her  food  and  kind  treatment 
if  she  would  tell  what  she  knew.  Then  she  became 
voluble. 

"  She  said  that  Butler  and  the  old  chiefs  had  held  a 
council  here.  He  had  been  reinforced  by  two  hun 
dred  Niagara  Indians,  who  wanted  to  fight  at  once ; 
but  those  who  had  been  in  the  battle  and  under  the 
artillery  fire  shook  their  heads.  The  majority  were 
against  beginning  hostilities  at  once,  but  voted  to 
wait  for  a  good  chance,  after  Sullivan  had  got  well 


QUEEN    CATHERINE  S    TOWN  2OI 

into  the  wilderness.  Two  of  the  old  chiefs  and  all 
the  squaws  were  in  favor  of  peace,  yet  Butler  would 
not  allow  any  surrender.  He  told  the  women  that 
Sullivan  would  kill  them  all. 

"  Brant  was  moody,  but  defiant.  He  was  disap 
pointed  at  the  non-arrival  of  a  big  band  of  Cayugas 
whom  he  was  expecting.  Fearing  they  might  come 
on  the  trail  after  his  retreat,  Brant  ordered  a  picture- 
message  to  be  left  for  them  near  one  of  the  holy 
places  so  well  known  to  the  Indians  of  the  whole 
confederacy.  One  of  our  scouts  found  this  and 
showed  it  to  General  Sullivan.  I  walked  out  to  see 
it.  On  the  rocks  was  a  drawing  in  bright  colors, 
showing  twelve  men  with  arrows  through  them. 
Near  by  was  a  live  young  sapling,  with  its  top 
branches  bent  down  and  twisted  around  the  trunk. 
This,  alike  for  friend  and  foe,  was  the  meaning  of  the 
double  symbol,  —  the  picture-message  and  the  tree 
set  for  defiance  :  '  We  have  lost  the  battle,  in  which 
twelve  warriors  were  killed  ;  but,  though  beaten,  we 
are  not  conquered.' 

"  The  old  squaw  said  further  that  many  Seneca  fam 
ilies  were  mourning  the  death  of  their  relatives,  and 
that  hundreds  of  women  and  children  were  hiding  in 
the  place  about  five  miles  away.  This  stirred  the 
general  at  once.  He  started  up,  ordering  Colonel 
Butler  to  take  a  regiment  and  the  coehorn  and  go 
immediately  in  pursuit.  Could  he  capture  these,  the 
whole  Seneca  nation  might  have  to  sue  for  peace. 


2O2         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Yet,  except  hard  marching,  the  expedition  was 
useless. 

"  The  general  is  a  kind  man  at  heart.  He  ordered 
a  comfortable  hut  to  be  built  for  the  old  woman,  and 
left  her  food  enough  to  last  for  several  weeks.  Then 
her  savage  eyes  overflowed  with  tears.  Some  of  our 
men  begrudged  the  old  woman  the  keg  of  pork  and 
the  round  of  beef  left  her,  for  good  meat  is  so 
scarce.  We  marched  on  the  next  day,  and  moved  on 
through  open  woods  and  over  level  country.  We 
came  to  a  small  Indian  village  that  was  a  model.  It 
was  made  of  «only  one  house,  but  this  had  ten  fires  in 
it,  one  fire  to  a  room,  showing  that  as  many  families 
lived  under  this  one  roof.  I  think  you  would  open 
your  eyes  wide,  were  you  to  see  how  well  furnished 
some  of  these  Indian  houses  are.  They  have  not 
only  plenty  of  grain,  but  horses,  cows,  and  wagons. 

"Yet  we  burnt  them  all  and  cut  down  the  corn, 
for  the  object  of  Congress  and  General  Washington 
is  to  make  this  country  uninhabitable  for  years  to 
come.  True,  there  are  clean  Indians  and  dirty  ones, 
and  some  villages  and  the  houses  in  them  are  nasty 
beyond  description,  being  more  like  pig-pens  than 
habitations  for  human  beings.  Usually  they  do  not 
take  any  care  to  have  clean  water,  never  dig  any 
wells,  but  take  the  water  for  drink  or  cooking  right  out 
of  the  lake  and  river. 

"  The  next  day  we  came  to  the  famous  Apple  Town, 
or  Kendaia,  situated  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from 


QUEEN  CATHERINE'S  TOWN  203 

the  lake.  It  is  the  Indian  town  in  which  Mary 
Vrooman  was  a  prisoner  for  nearly  a  year.  Here 
the  houses  were  built  of  hewn  logs  covered  with 
bark,  and  some  of  them  were  well  painted.  Eleven 
of  them  stood  on  a  ridge  sixty  rods  long  and  twenty 
rods  wide.  The  corn-fields  were  at  some  distance 
from  the  town. 

"The  Wyoming  militiamen  had  been  very  eager 
to  get  to  Apple  Town,  for  it  was  out  of  this  village 
that  one  of  the  most  active  parties  in  Brant's  raid 
on  Wyoming  and  Nanticoke  had  set  forth.  You 
should  have  seen  the  soldiers  rush  into  the  place 
and  begin  at  once  to  hunt  in  the  bark  houses  for  the 
dried  scalps  of  their  relatives,  some  of  which  they 
found,  and  at  least  four  were  recognized.  Then  how 
lustily  they  did  swing  their  axes  on  the  trees  and  put 
the  torch  to  the  houses !  I  tell  you  it  was  a  good 
sight  to  behold.  Our  men  drove  three  Indian  ponies 
into  the  lake,  but  caught  them  easily. 

"  Among  our  other  surprises  here  was  our  seeing 
a  white  man  named  Luke  Sweetland  rush  out  from 
his  hiding-place,  some  distance  from  the  town,  and 
greet  his  old  friends  from  Wyoming,  some  of  whom 
he  knew  by  name.  He  had  been  captured  at  Nanti 
coke  in  the  raids  last  year  and  adopted  into  the  tribe. 
He  said  that  in  winter  he  lived  mostly  on  suppawn, 
and  that  from  April  until  corn  was  fit  to  roast,  he 
was  nearly  starved,  but  now  he  was  fat,  for  succo 
tash  was  plenty.  He  told  Vrooman  and  me  some- 


2O4         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

thing  about  the  salt-making  among  the  Indians, 
which  we  have  long  wanted  to  know. 

"  Mr.  Vrooman  remembers  that  several  years  ago, 
when  he  was  present  at  the  blacksmith's  shop  in 
Cherry  Valley,  a  squaw  brought  a  copper  kettle  to 
get  a  rent  soldered  up,  which  had  been  accidentally 
made  in  it  by  a  slip  of  a  tomahawk.  Seeing  a  shin 
ing  incrustation  in  it,  he  asked  the  squaw  what  the 
crystals  were,  but  she  made  some  evasive  reply. 
Whereupon  he  swept  some  of  it  into  his  palm  and 
putting  his  tongue  to  it,  found  it  was  pure  salt.  The 
squaw  seemed  displeased,  and,  though  he  plied  her 
with  questions  and  promises  of  gewgaws,  she  would 
say  nothing. 

"  Sweetland  says  that  these  Cayuga  Indians  regu 
larly  sent  him  about  twenty  miles  off  to  the  salt 
springs,  which  lie  in  a  ravine  on  this  side  of  Cayuga 
Lake,  several  miles  south  of  the  northern  end,  and 
also  in  the  flats  at  the  lake's  end,  near  a  big  fall  of 
water,  one  of  three  streams  about  two  or  three  miles 
this  side  of  Coreorganel.  This  salt  the  Kendaia 
people  make  and  sell  to  all  the  savages  in  this  part  of 
the  country.  We  wish  they  had  left  a  store  of  it  for 
us,  as  we  shall  need  a  good  deal  of  salt  while  living 
on  so  much  green  food.  Both  lakes,  Seneca  and 
Cayuga,  are  full  of  fish,  particularly  salmon,  trout, 
rock,  and  sheepshead,  while  game  on  land  is  plen 
tiful. 

"  Sweetland  tells  us  that  there  were  many  wounded 


QUEEN  CATHERINE'S  TOWN  205 

in  the  battle,  and  the  savages  are  much  cast  down. 
They  took  Vrooman's  sister  along  with  them,  when 
they  retreated  northward,  but  Sweetland  thinks  that 
his  wife  is  still  over  at  Coreorganel.  It  was  at  Ken- 
daia  that  I  received  your  letter,  which  an  express  had 
brought  up  from  Tioga  Point,  where  it  had  remained 
over  a  week.  By  the  same  messenger  we  heard 
about  our  own  wounded  after  the  battle.  I  am  sorry 
to  tell  you  that  Colonel  Dearborn's  nephew,  only 
sixteen  years  old,  and  with  whom  I  got  acquainted, 
because  we  were  boys  together,  died  of  his  wounds 
on  the  22d.  Although  Kendaia  must  be  an  old 
town,  for  some  of  the  trees  appear  to  be  sixty  years 
old,  yet  our  horses  and  cattle  could  not  get  any  pas 
turage  here,  and  many  of  them  strayed  away. 

"So  the  next  day  we  could  not  march  till  three 
o'clock,  and  even  then  the  horses  and  cattle  were  not 
all  recovered.  Some  time  before  sundown  we  stopped 
for  supper  and  the  night.  Wild  pea-vines  grew  very 
luxuriantly,  and  here  our  horses  enjoyed  them  as  if 
they  were  clover. 

"  We  could  see  on  the  other  side  of  the  lake  some 
Indians  busy  with  horses,  but  they  did  not  look  like 
warriors.  There  was  quite  a  large  town,  with  houses 
and  corn-fields. 

"  I  remained  a  long  time  on  the  edge  of  the  lake, 
watching  the  Indians  and  the  horses  on  the  other 
side,  for  something  unusual  seemed  to  be  going  on. 
Old  men  and  squaws  seemed  to  be  trying  which 


2O6    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

was  the  fastest  of  the  colts,  for  the  animals  appeared 
to  be  young  horses.  There  were  many  Indian  chil 
dren  interested  and  lively.  I  borrowed  an  officer's 
spy-glass,  and,  though  the  sun  was  now  pretty  well 
down  in  the  sky  and  the  shadows  beginning  to  stretch 
long  toward  the  east,  I  saw  that  they  brought  out  a 
squaw  and  tied  her  on  a  white  pony.  They  rested 
her  body  on  the  animal's  back,  her  head  toward  the 
tail,  and  then  fastened  and  tied  her  feet  around 
the  pony's  neck.  Whooping  and  yelling,  the  old 
men  and  squaws  gave  the  animal's  flank  a  whack, 
and  off  it  went  upon  a  gallop  along  the  lake,  and 
finally  I  lost  sight  of  it,  white  though  it  was,  in  the 
woods.  What  could  it  mean  ?  When  I  told  Vroo- 
man  of  what  I  saw,  he  seemed  at  first  interested  and 
then  distressed,  but  said  nothing. 

"I  talked  to  one  of  the  friendly  Oneidas,  named 
Hanyari,  a  splendid  specimen  of  a  redman,  about 
what  I  had  seen.  He  was  highly  interested  in  all  I 
could  tell  him. 

"  '  It  must  be  a  case  of  witchcraft,'  said  he.  '  Some 
squaw  has  been  accused  of  bewitching  a  man  or 
woman.  Or,  what  is  nearly  as  bad,  of  saying  some 
thing  offensive  to  the  tribe  or  predicting  calamity  or 
defeat.' 

"  '  It  may  be  she  foretold  the  thrashing  the  Senecas 
got  at  Newtown,'  I  suggested. 

"  '  Quite  likely.  Probably  the  old  men  and  squaws 
may  have  heard  of  the  loss  of  some  of  their  warriors, 


QUEEN  CATHERINE'S  TOWN  207 

and  though  her  words  may  have  been  uttered  months 
ago,  yet  even  now  recalled  or  even  dreamed  of,  they 
may  be  the  means  of  accusation,  punishment.  She 
will  certainly  starve,  poor  squaw.' 

"  From  my  friend  the  Oneida  guide,  I  learned  many 
of  the  Indian  notions  of  witchcraft  and  of  religion. 
As  night  fell,  the  stars  came  out  one  by  one,  cover 
ing  the  heavens,  while  Seneca  Lake  was  spangled 
with  reflections  like  jewels.  Vrooman  joined  us  and 
we  had  a  talk  about  the  stars,  and  the  lake,  and 
the  Indian's  idea  of  creation,  which  I  must  write 
down  for  you." 

Here  the  story-teller  must  add  that  it  was  not  all 
marching,  fighting,  cutting  down  corn-fields,  or  drag 
ging  artillery  up  and  down  hills  that  occupied  our 
young  Continentals.  Some  of  them,  students,  school 
masters,  lovers,  friends,  enjoyed  mightily  the  sight 
of  the  flowers  by  day  and  the  stars  at  night.  It  was 
superbly  clear  weather  during  that  whole  month 
of  September,  1779,  and  every  night  the  glorious 
heavens  showed  the  sight  that  never  palls  on  the 
eye.  On  this  night,  by  the  shores  of  Seneca  Lake, 
when  the  silver  baldric  of  the  stars  stretched  its 
palpitating  glory  across  the  whole  heavens,  from 
horizon  to  horizon,  Vrooman  turned  to  Hanyari  and 
politely  asked  him  what  the  Indians  thought  of  "the 
milky  way,"  and  how  it  originated.  Hanyari  was 
one  of  Domine  Kirkland's  warm  friends.  He  knew 


2O8    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

how  the  white  men  thought,  but  he  was  not  wholly 
ashamed  of  Iroquois  lore,  and  when  in  the  mood, 
loved  to  talk  freely. 

"  Oh,"  said  Hanyari,  good  humoredly,  "  I'm  tired 
of  answering  your  questions  ;  tell  me  what  you  think 
of  it?  How  did  the  great  white  light  come  there? 
Why  do  you  call  it  'milky  way'?" 

"  Well,  in  our  story,  which  comes  from  the  Greeks, 
there  was  a  very  stout  little  baby,  named  Jupiter,  who 
lived  a  long  time  ago  up  in  the  heavens,  and  once,  in 
a  temper,  spilt  his  milk  all  over  the  sky.  But  our 
fathers  have  no  story  of  their  own  to  tell,  so  you 
must  tell  me  yours." 

"We  have  not  much  of  a  story,"  said  Hanyari; 
"but  one  of  my  uncles  told  me  that  this  band  of 
light  was  the  track  of  the  great  tortoise  walking 
across  the  sky.  Others  say  it  is  the  road  which 
departed  souls  travel  on  to  reach  the  land  beyond 
the  western  heavens,  and  the  lights  in  it  are  the 
shining  foot-marks  of  the  greater  heroes." 

"Have  you  any  name  for  the  other  stars?"  asked 
Vrooman. 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  Hanyari,  and  his  eyes  brightened. 

"  Well,"  said  Vrooman,  "what  about  the  north  star?  " 

"  Oh,"  said  Hanyari,  "  that  is  the  star  we  travel  by. 
Since  we  learned  some  things  of  you  white  men,  we 
call  it  the  'compass'  star." 

"  Have  you  names  of  groups  of  stars  when  seen 
together  ?  "  asked  Vrooman. 


QUEEN    CATHERINE  S    TOWN  2OQ 

"Oh,  yes,"  said  Hanyari.  "We  have  the  fisher 
man's  star,  the  loon-hunter  in  a  canoe,  the  travellers 
in  the  big  boat,  the  bear's  head  and  flank,  the  morn 
ing  star,  and  the  seven  stars." 

"  What  about  the  great  bear  ?  "  inquired  his  white 
friend. 

"  Oh !  is  that  what  you  white  men  call  it  ? "  in 
quired  Hanyari.  "  Our  fathers  tell  us  that  one  day 
one  of  the  great  stone-clothed  giants  was  walking 
through  the  woods,  when  he  found  some  Iroquois 
hunters  chasing  a  big  bear.  The  giant  took  the 
animal's  part,  and,  seizing  some  rocks,  hurled  them  at 
the  hunters,  killing  all  except  three.  Yet  he  enjoyed 
seeing  the  men  have  the  sport,  and  would  not  stop  it. 
So,  taking  the  bear  and  the  hunters  in  his  hand,  he 
hurled  them  up  into  the  sky,  and  there  they  are.  See 
those  four  stars  together  ?  The  big  ones  are  the 
bear's  body  and  legs.  Do  you  see  that  big  star 
next  ?  That's  the  foremost  hunter,  intent  with  his 
bow  and  arrows  on  shooting  the  bear.  See  that 
second  star  ?  That's  the  second  hunter.  He  is  carry 
ing  a  kettle  to  cook  the  meat  in,  when  the  bear  is  cut 
up.  Last  of  all  is  the  third  hunter,  who  is  gathering 
brushwood  to  make  the  fire." 

"  Oh,"  laughed  Vrooman  ;  "  you  have  a  '  kettle,' 
and  we  have  a  '  dipper.'  Is  that  the  whole  of  the 
story?"  said  Vrooman. 

"  No ;  my  aunt  told  me  that  when  all  the  leaves 
turned  red  in  autumn,  it  was  because  the  foremost 
p 


2IO         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

hunter  had  shot  the  bear  to  death,  and  through  the 
hole  in  which  the  arrow  entered,  and  along  the  shaft 
and  over  the  feathers,  the  bear's  blood  drops  out.  In 
autumn,  this  drips  upon  the  leaves  of  the  trees,  mak 
ing  them  all  red,  until  at  last  they,  too,  die  and  fall." 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

THE    RESCUE    OF    TRINTJE    VROOMAN 

"  A  A/E  were  all  in  high  spirits  when  we  started 
V  V  again  next  day,  for  we  expected  another 
battle  at  the  outlet  of  the  lake  at  its  northern  end, 
which  we  had  to  ford.  The  scouts  were  sent  out  on 
all  sides,  but  found  the  coast  clear.  Crossing  this 
outlet  in  water  knee  deep,  we  marched  farther  on 
through  a  terrible  quagmire  called  the  'soap  mine,' 
and  still  another  swamp,  and  then  along  the  lake 
beach  until  we  came  to  Butler's  buildings.  These 
were  four  or  five  in  number,  containing,  until  recently, 
great  stores  of  tools,  seeds,  provisions,  and  war  ma 
terial.  We  set  them  on  fire,  and  -then  moved  on  to 
the  famous  Seneca  Castle,  or  Kanedasaga. 

"  The  capture  of  this  Indian  stronghold,  of  which  we 
have  heard  so  much,  was  accomplished  with  more  fun 
than  dignity  or  bloodshed.  General  Sullivan  is  not 
yet  used  to  the  slipperiness  of  our  invisible  enemy, 
but  he  takes  no  risks.  Surely  expecting  resistance 
here,  if  anywhere,  he  cautiously  surrounded  the  town 
with  several  brigades.  After  being  for  five  hours 
within  three  miles  of  the  '  castle,'  General  Hand's 


212         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

and  Colonel  Dubois's  men,  under  connivance  of  their 
officers,  who  had  learned  from  their  scouts  that  the 
town  was  empty,  loaded  themselves  with  vegetables. 
Bound  to  have  a  good  supper,  some  of  the  soldiers 
had  as  many  as  three  pumpkins  stuck  on  their  bayo 
nets,  or  were  staggering  under  a  breastload  of  ears  of 
corn  or  strings  of  beans,  when  suddenly  General  Sul 
livan  appeared  on  the  scene.  Half  vexed,  that  after 
all  his  elaborate  plans,  there  would  be  no  need  of 
either  tactics  or  strategy,  and  half  in  good  humor,  he 
roared  out  sternly,  even  while  his  eyes  twinkled  :  — 

"  '  You  clumsy,  unmilitary  rascals  !  What !  Are 
you  going  to  storm  a  town  with  pumpkins !  Open 
at  once  to  right  and  left,  and  let  men  unaccustomed 
to  plunder  carry  out  my  orders.' 

"  At  once  the  whole  host  was  disrobed  of  its  vege 
table  accoutrements  and  armor,  and  an  avalanche  of 
pumpkins,  squashes,  melons,  and  mandrakes  rolled 
down  the  hill,  while  beans  and  corn  strewed  the 
ground. 

"  After  a  few  moments,  however,  the  general  rode 
on,  and  the  men  gathered  up  their  spoil  again  and 
entered  the  town. 

"  Kanedasaga  contains  fifty  houses,  some  of  them 
with  well-made  chimneys,  surrounded  with  orchards 
and  corn-fields,  and  with  many  marks  of  the  white 
man's  assistance,  such  as  ploughs,  axes,  and  vats  for 
tanning.  We  found  here  a  great  many  things  of  Ind 
ian  workmanship,  which  our  boys  would  like  to  carry 


THE    RESCUE    OF    TRINTJE    VROOMAN  213 

home  as  curiosities,  if  they  were  not  already  heavily 
loaded.  The  Indians  had  left  in  a  great  hurry,  but 
we  found  a  little  white  boy,  about  three  years  old, 
undoubtedly  a  captive.  A  milch  cow  was  browsing 
not  far  away  from  him,  but  he  was  playing  with  a 
chicken.  He  was  thin,  very  hungry,  and  perfectly 
naked.  He  could  not  talk  a  word  of  Dutch  or  Eng 
lish,  but  prattled  in  Indian. 

" '  Can  a  mother  forget  her  suckling  child  ? '  I 
thought ;  but,  poor  baby,  his  mother  is  probably 
dead.  One  of  the  officers  took  care  of  him,  and  he 
seemed  very  happy  to  have  a  foster  father  and  to  get 
clothes.  You  ought  to  have  seen  him  eat  some  of  our 
army  bread,  with  fresh  milk,  when  the  cows  came  up. 
One  of  the  Oneida  Indians  made  a  pannier,  or  basket, 
on  one  side  of  a  pack  horse,  balancing  the  boy  by  bags 
of  flour  on  the  other  side,  and  thus  the  little  fellow 
has  travelled  with  us,  the  pet  of  the  regiment.  He 
gets  daily  rations  of  milk  from  Colonel  Hubley's  cow. 

"  I  am  afraid  we  shall  not  have  any  more  battles, 
but  I  am  surprised  at  the  Indians  giving  up  their 
houses  and  corn  lands  so  easily.  It  must  be  the 
artillery  that  has  so  taken  the  spirit  out  of  them. 
Dr.  Campfield,  the  surgeon,  says  that  the  land  here 
is  a  good  deal  worn  out  from  long  cultivation,  but 
that  the  town  is  in  a  healthy  place.  It  was  regularly 
laid  out  by  Sir  William  Johnson,  and  in  the  centre 
is  a  large,  green  plot,  like  a  white  man's  town. 
Twenty-three  years  ago  there  was  a  fort  built  here, 


214    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

and  some  of  the  old  palisades  are  still  sticking  in 
the  ground. 

"  This  was  the  home  of  a  famous  chief  called  '  Old 
Smoke.'  The  particular  honor  he  enjoyed  was  to 
carry  the  burning  brand  to  light  the  council  fires.  He 
took  part  in  the  raid  on  Wyoming.  His  successor  is 
a  boy  under  twelve  years  old,  and  he  has  a  daughter 
married  to  Roland,  a  son  of  Queen  Catherine.  • 

"  From  this  place,  the  general  is  going  to  send 
back  all  the  sick  and  lame  men,  together  with  the 
broken-down  horses,  and  Captain  John  Reed,  with 
fifty  men,  will  escort  them  back  to  Fort  Sullivan. 
Then  the  captain  is  to  come  back  again  to  Kana- 
waholla  with  supplies,  to  meet  us  on  our  return. 
Although  we  shall  have  to  live  on  vegetables  chiefly, 
making  this  a  '  succotash  campaign,'  General  Sulli 
van  is  determined  to  push  on  to  the  Genesee  castle. 

"  We  are  now  indeed  in  a  strange  country.  Hitherto 
we  had  guides  like  Mr.  Vrooman,  who  has  been 
through  this  region,  besides  Hanyari  and  his  Oneida 
Indians,  and  Domine  Kirkland,  who  lived  here  two 
years  and  once  nearly  lost  his  life,  when  the  Senecas 
turned  against  him.  But  westward  from  this  point 
not  one  soul  in  the  army  has  ever  been.  So  the 
general  must  depend  upon  his  scouts.  We  know 
the  route  we  have  passed  over,  for  we  have  with 
us  a  party  of  surveyors  who  have  chained  and 
measured  every  mile  of  the  path.  Their  chief,  Lieu 
tenant  Lodge,  has  made  maps  of  the  region  traversed, 


THE    RESCUE    OF    TRINTJE    VROOMAN  215 

that  is,  of  the  river  routes  over  which  we  have  thus 
far  come,  but  now  we  leave  the  rivers  and  are  in 
the  lake  country. 

"  Last  night,  after  the  day's  march,  while  all  except, 
the  sentries  were  sound  asleep,  some  of  the  men 
were  awakened  by  the  sound  of  a  cannon,  as  they 
thought,  and  a  few  even  had  dreams  of  a  battle. 
The  sentinels  all  cocked  their  guns  and  held  them 
ready  for  what  they  supposed  would  result  soon 
after  the  booming  sounds  which  they  had  heard. 
Were  Butler  and  his  Canadians  reinforced  and 
marching  on  them  with  cannon  ?  But  nothing 
further  came  of  the  noise.  It  seemed  to  be  down 
in  the  lake.  What  could  it  have  been  ?  Has  Seneca 
a  '  lake  cannon  '  like  that  in  Cayuga  ? 

"  As  we  rested  yesterday,  several  bands  were  sent 
out  to  explore  and  to  destroy.  Colonel  John  Harper 
called  for  volunteers,  and  I  was  delighted  when  he 
took  me  as  one.  We  followed  the  Seneca  River 
about  eight  miles,  and  came  to  a  town  of  eighteen 
houses,  called  '  Skoiyase,'  in  which,  it  is  said,  Red 
Jacket  often  spoke.  This  eloquent  chief  and  orator, 
who  belongs  to  the  Wolf  Clan,  has  a  name  which 
means  '  he  keeps  them  awake.'  He  is  said  to  have 
been  in  favor  of  our  side  in  the  war. 

"  The  most  curious  thing  I  saw  on  this  raid  was  a 
line  of  fish  ponds,  and  here,  it  seems,  lived  an  Indian 
chief  named  Fish  Carrier,  who  made  a  good  living 
by  raising  fish  and  selling  them.  There  is  a  great 


2l6    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

trail  here  through  this  town.  It  extends  all  the  way 
from  Albany  to  Niagara.  While  we  were  here, 
Major  Parr's  riflemen  began  the  work  of  destroying 
the  town  and  crops  which  I  saw  a  few  days  before 
from  across  the  lake,  at  which  the  squaw  was  bound 
to  a  horse,  and  driven  away  into  the  wilderness  like 
a  scapegoat.  This  place  is  called  '  Shenanwaga.' 
There  was  so  much  to  do  that  the  major  sent  for 
four  hundred  more  men,  to  help  in  completing  the 
work.  The  twenty  houses  were  new  and  surrounded 
with  fields  of  maize,  orchards  of  apple  and  peach 
trees,  stacks  of  hay,  hogs,  chickens,  ducks,  and  geese. 
Even  the  fields  were  fenced,  and  the  whole  village 
seemed  quite  equal  to  a  white  man's  frontier  clearing, 
yet  everything  was  destroyed." 

Here  the  story-teller  must  narrate  what  happened 
to  Claes  Vrooman  on  this  side-raid  to  Shenanwaga. 
In  his  letter  to  his  mother,  Herman  Clute  only  refers 
to  the  incident  that  so  affected  the  disconsolate  bride 
groom,  and  says  that  Vrooman  "  will  write  fully  to 
his  father,  and  thus  you  and  all  the  folks  will  know 
about  it "  ;  but  we  must  give  it  here. 

Vrooman,  as  one  of  the  rifle  corps,  numbering 
about  one  hundred  men,  went  with  Major  Parr,  as 
guide  and  scout  also.  While  this  party,  and  after 
ward  the  extra  four  hundred  men  detailed  to  assist, 
were  busy  with  torch,  axe,  and  knife  in  levelling  vil 
lage  and  crops,  Vrooman  with  Nathaniel  van  Patten, 


THE    RESCUE    OF    TRINTJE    VROOMAN  21 7 

a  comrade,  took  position  on  a  bit  of  rising  ground  to 
guard  against  surprise.  The  afternoon  and  night 
passed  by  without  an  adventure  or  any  sound  save  the 
cries  of  the  wild  animals,  but  on  the  8th  of  Septem 
ber,  as  morning  dawned,  Van  Patten,  being  on  guard, 
awoke  Vrooman,  saying  :  — 

"  Claes,  get  up.  By  the  holy  sacrament,  if  here 
isn't  a  horse,  loaded  with  a  squaw.  She  is  tied  to 
its  back.  And  what  do  you  think  ?  She's  actually 
singing.  It's  something  we  know,  for  I  heard  the 
music  played  by  the  band.  She  can't  see  me,  but  I 
had  a  strong  notion  to  shoot  the  animal.  I  could 
bring  down  the  horse,  without  hitting  her.  The 
beast  is  white  and  I  could  take  him  in  the  head 
easily." 

"  Are  you  sure  it's  a  squaw  ?  "  asked  Vrooman, 
as  he  rose  hastily,  and,  out  of  sheer  habit,  opened 
the  pan  of  his  rifle  and  shook  some  fresh  priming 
into  it. 

"Sure  of  it.     Come  and  see." 

"Warily  and  as  noiselessly  as  possible,  the  two 
men  approached  the  pony,  for  such  it  was.  Brows 
ing  on  the  rich  grass  in  spite  of  the  thongs  which 
bound  the  woman's  feet  around  its  neck,  it  paid  no 
attention  to  the  men  at  first.  As  it  moved  about, 
the  face  of  its  burden  was  exposed. 

"  God  have  mercy  on  me  !     It's  a  white  woman  ! 

"  Hello,  who  are  you  ? "  shouted  Van  Patten  to  the 
object. 


2l8         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

"A  Christian  woman,  Trintje  Vrooman,  of  Sche- 
nectady,  a  captive,  taken  at  Cherry  Valley.  Help  me." 

The  voice  was  low  and  feeble,  as  of  one  very 
weak,  but  mild  as  it  was,  the  pony  started,  pricked 
up  its  ears  and  trotted  off,  sniffing  the  air  and  gazing 
defiantly  at  the  two  men. 

"  Heaven  help  me  and  her !  It's  my  wife,  Van 
Patten.  We  must  not  lose  her,  or  miss  the  beast. 
What  shall  I  do?" 

"  Here,"  said  Van  Patten  ;  "  you  pick  some  of  these 
tiny  white  flowers  and  set  them  in  the  palm  of  your 
hand,  as  if  you  had  some  salt,  and  approach  the  pony 
from  the  front,  while  I'll  go  round,  and  we'll  so  get 
about  the  beast  that,  even  if  we  cannot  catch  him, 
we'll  drive  him  in  among  our  men  in  camp." 

Suddenly  the  quiet  was  broken  and  the  men  heard 
distinctly  the  music  and  the  first  verse  in  Dutch  of 
that  famous  song  of  Philipp  van  Marnix  Saint-Alde- 
gonde's,  "Wilhelmus  van  Nassouwe,"  with  its  music, 
an  old  hunting  song  of  the  thirteenth  century  (see 
page  219). 

So  cleverly  did  Vrooman  manage  the  lure,  while 
Van  Patten  stealthily  approached  in  the  rear,  that  the 
former,  by  coaxing  and  holding  forward  the  hand 
half  closed,  which  had  in  it  the  whitish  flowers  look 
ing  like  salt,  was  almost  within  catching  distance  of 
the  horse's  mane  or  the  woman's  moccasined  foot, 
when  Van  Patten  grasped  the  animal's  tail,  and  his 
captors  had  their  double  treasure. 


THE    RESCUE    OF    TRINTJE    VROOMAN 


1.  WILHELMUS  VAN  NASSOUWE. 


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Then  was  seen  the  true  chivalry  of  the  frontiersmen. 
Both  knives  were  unsheathed  at  once,  thongs  cut,  and 
the  cramped  woman's  body  borne  limp  in  the  arms 
of  her  lover-husband  to  the  fire,  to  food,  and  to  rest ; 


22O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

while  Van  Patten,  not  for  one  instant  relaxing  vigi 
lance  against  possible  savage  foes  lurking  near,  led 
the  horse  and  himself  away,  so  that  the  loved  ones 
might  be  alone  in  sacred  joy  and  in  gratitude  to  God. 

Trintje's  story  in  outline  was  soon  told.  Until  the 
news  of  Sullivan's  advance  had  been  received  at  Core- 
organel,  in  the  Inlet  Valley,  near  the  modern  city  of 
Ithaca,  she  had  been  living  there,  working  hard,  but 
well  fed  and  kindly  treated.  Then,  sold  to  a  squaw 
in  the  town  of  Shenanwaga,  she  had  fallen  under  the 
suspicion  of  being  a  witch.  For,  since  this  white 
woman  had  come  among  them,  the  black  rats,  un 
known  before,  had  made  their  appearance,  killing  off 
the  native  gray  rats  and  playing  havoc  in  the  store 
houses,  by  devouring  the  grain.  From  Coreorganel, 
the  black  rats  had  reached  Shenanwaga.  Who  could 
have  led  them  or  made  them  but  the  white  woman  ? 

After  thus  poisoning  public  opinion,  the  old  man 
and  his  squaw  had  openly  accused  Trintje  Vrooman 
of  turning  old  water-worn  stones  into  black  rats. 
This  she  did,  according  to  the  accusation,  by  breath 
ing  fire  on  the  stones.  Other  calamities  and  portents 
were  traced  to  the  white  woman,  who  was  alleged 
to  be  able  to  breathe  out  fire. 

A  council,  consisting  mostly  of  old  men  and 
squaws,  —  for  the  warriors  were  all  away  under  Brant 
and  Butler,  —  was  held.  After  a  long  pow-wow,  it 
was  decided,  before  flight  —  for  Sullivan's  town  de 
stroyers  had  been  discovered  on  the  opposite  side  of 


THE    RESCUE    OF    TRINTJE    VROOMAN  221 

the  lake  —  to  tie  her  on  a  swift  pony  or  colt  not  yet 
broken  to  use,  and  set  him  free.  It  was  expected  that 
she  would  starve  in  two  or  three  days.  Almost  as 
soon  as  she  was  tied  on  and  the  pony  struck  and 
sent  flying,  the  whole  village,  Indians,  dogs,  horses, 
and  all,  fled  westward. 

Trintje's  robust  constitution  had  withstood  the 
strain.  The  pony  had  kept  for  the  most  part  in 
the  open  country,  and  then,  naturally,  had  returned 
to  the  place  most  familiar,  whence  he  had  set  out. 
Except  torturing  thirst,  even  more  painful  to  bear 
than  hunger,  and  though  much  scratched  on  her 
limbs  and  one  side  of  her  body,  Trintje  was  unhurt. 
She  quickly  recovered  her  spirits,  though  the  return 
of  strength  was  slow. 

Indeed,  when  the  detachment  reached  Sullivan's 
main  army,  Claes  Vrooman  was  warmly  congratu 
lated  by  General  Sullivan  himself.  And,  since  it 
was  too  late  to  hope  to  overtake  the  party  sent  off 
to  Tioga  Point,  the  special  privilege  was  given  him 
to  have  his  wife  accompany  the  army  to  Honeoye, 
where  she  could  rest  at  the  fort,  there  to  remain 
while  the  advance  proceeded  to  the  goal  of  the  expe 
dition,  the  famed  Castle  of  the  Genesee. 

"What  did  you  think  of,  most  of  the  time,  when 
the  Indians  turned  you  into  a  female  Mazeppa  ?  " 
asked  Claes,  seeing  that  Trintje  had  recovered  her 
spirits. 

"  Well,  to  tell  the  truth,  Claes,  after  the  first  fears 


222    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

and  agony  were  over,  and  I  had  prayed  again  and 
again  the  evening  prayer  we  learned  at  home,  '  O 
Merciful  God,  eternal  light,  shining  in  darkness,' 
etc.,  I  was  not  so  very  uncomfortable  during  the 
thirty-six  hours  or  so  that  I  took  an  involuntary  ride 
on  horseback.  During  the  day  I  kept  singing,  occa 
sionally  shouting,  hoping  the  army  might  be  near, 
for  I  had  heard  rumors  of  the  coming  of  our  men. 
The  next  morning  I  felt  sure  that  white  men  were 
near,  and  I  began  singing  the  old  Wilhelmus  Lied. 
But  when  I  saw  and  recognized  you,  I  was  so  happy 
that  I  wanted  to  cry,  and  yet,  as  you  carried  me  in 
your  arms,  through  my  light  head  ran  the  old  nurs 
ery  song.  Here  it  is,  — 

"  '  Ride  a  cock  horse  to  Ban  bury  Cross, 
To  see  the  fair  lady  ride  a  white  horse. 
Rings  on  her  fingers  and  bells  on  her  toes, 
She  shall  have  music  wherever  she  goes.' " 

"Well,"  said  Claes,  "the  rings  were  not  there,  but 
the  music,  the  fair  lady,  and  the  white  horse  were." 
Laus  Deo ! 


CHAPTER  XIX 

CANANDAIGUA  AND  HONEOYE A  SUCCOTASH 

CAMPAIGN 

AFTER  several  days'  subsistence  chiefly  on  corn 
and  beans,  it  was  a  cheering  sight  to  the  main 
army  when  the  pack  horses,  returning  from  Shenan- 
waga,  came  in  camp  loaded  with  dressed  pigs  and 
poultry. 

The  Continentals  seemed  in  unusually  good  spirits 
after  their  liberal  diet  of  fried  pork  and  chicken. 
They  set  forward  again  on  the  9th  of  September, 
camping  at  night  by  a  stream  of  good  water. 

Herman  Clute's  letter  continues  :  — 

"  On  the  roth,  we  forded  the  outlet  of  Canandaigua 
Lake,  marching  a  mile  westward  round  the  town. 
Its  name,  Canandaigua,  means,  '  the  place  where  we 
take  off  our  packs  to  rest.'  It  is  an  important  trade 
town  and  baiting  place  on  the  long  trail  between 
Niagara  and  Schenectady.  On  entering  the  town, 
we  saw  ahead  of  us,  hung  up  on  a  tree  in  front  of 
the  big  council  house,  a  white  dog,  with  a  string  of 
wampum  round  its  neck,  and  otherwise  most  curi 
ously  decked  and  trimmed.  One  of  the  friendly 

223 


224         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Oneidas  told  me  it  was  a  sacrifice  to  the  gods,  and 
an  offering  accompanying  prayer  for  victory. 

"  No  one  was  in  the  town,  but,  unbeknown  to  us, 
the  island  at  the  end  of  the  lake  —  the  only  island 
we  saw  in  any  of  these  lakes,  though  Vrooman 
says  there  is  a  very  pretty  island  in  Lake  Cayuga  — 
was  packed  full  of  squaws  and  pappooses  in  hiding. 
We  should  have  bagged  much  game  had  we  known 
this  at  the  time,  for  every  woman  and  child  captured 
is  a  hostage  for  the  braves.  All  around  the  edge  of 
the  lake  are  many  thousands  of  rounded  stones. 

"  Canandaigua  town  had  twenty-three  log  houses, 
large  and  new,  some  of  them  of  framed  timber. 
These  are  by  far  the  best-built  Indian  dwellings  we 
have  yet  seen ;  but  they  and  the  corn  all  went  on  the 
same  pile  and  up  into  smoke  from  the  same  fire. 
The  first  things  we  noticed  were  two  posts  fixed 
near  the  council  house,  and  alongside  of  these  two 
war-mallets.  Was  it  an  execution  ground  ? 

"  This  Seneca  country  is  so  very  flat  that  there 
are  very  few  springs.  This  makes  it  hard  for  a 
marching  army,  on  these  hot  September  days.  Over 
many  miles  that  we  have  passed,  tall,  wild  grass  as 
high  as  the  horses  grows,  showing  that  here  were 
old,  cleared  lands  for  maize,  which  the  Indians  burn 
over  every  year.  The  smoke  fills  the  air  for  hun 
dreds  of  miles,  and  makes  that  haze  which  we 
associate  with  Indian  summer,  though  exactly  when 
that  comes  no  two  Americans  are  agreed.  The 


CANANDAIGUA  AND  HONEOYE         22$ 

Indians  say  that  it  is  the  smoke  from  the  pipe  of 
the  Great  Spirit,  and  a  proof  that  he  is  in  a  good 
humor. 

"  I  noticed  while  here  a  hill  that  seemed  strangely 
bare,  for  most  of  the  hills  we  have  seen  are  wooded. 
That  evening,  as  usual,  around  the  camp-fire  at  Can- 
andaigua,  Mr.  Vrooman  and  Hanyari  talked,  to  my 
great  delight,  about  old  Indian  legends.  This  time 
we  had  Mrs.  Vrooman  with  us  as  a  listener.  She 
survived  her  rough  bareback  ride  astonishingly 
well. 

" '  This  is  a  wonderful  place  for  the  Seneca 
Indians/  said  Hanyari.  '  Indeed,  this  is  the  nation's 
birthplace.  The  Senecas  claim  that  they  are  unlike 
the  other  Iroquois,  for  their  first  ancestors  were  all 
born  together,  at  once  and  here  they  got  their 
name.' 

"  '  How  is  that  ? '  said  Vrooman. 

" '  Well,  you  know  their  name  means,  '  the  big-hill 
people,'  and  this  is  the  hill  which  gives  them  their 
name.' 

'"A  good  story  here,  I  suppose,'  said  Vrooman. 
'  Let  me  have  it.' 

" '  Well,  a  long,  long  time  ago,  the  Great  Spirit  was 
much  pleased  when  he  looked  on  this  beautiful  Can- 
andaigua  lake  and  landscape.  These  he  thought  the 
fairest  on  earth.  So,  in  his  happy  mood,  he  touched 
this  hill,  which  the  white  men  call  "  Bare  Hill."  For 
a  moment  there  was  no  sign  or  motion,  but  before 
Q 


226         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

many  minutes  the  mountain  opened  and  out  came 
little  things  which  at  first  looked  like  worms,  but 
pretty  soon  these  grew  into  bodies  with  arms  and 
legs,  and  when  the  sun  shone  on  them  they  proved 
to  be  boys  and  girls.  They  grew  up  and  began  to 
play  with  each  other.  In  time,  they  turned  into  men 
and  women,  and  went  forth  to  live  in  the  land  a  little 
farther  south,  but  they  always  looked  back  on  this 
mountain  with  pleasure,  and  called  themselves  the 
"  People  of  the  Great  Hill."  That  is  what  the  word 
Seneca  means.' 

" '  Do  they  ever  visit  this  hill,'  asked  Vrooman, 
'  for  any  purpose  ? ' 

"  '  Oh,  yes ;  very  often.  They  come  here  to  give 
thanks  and  pray  to  the  Great  Spirit.  They  talk  of  it 
as  the  Mother  Hill.  For  both,  joy  and  grief  they 
come,  and  sometimes  even  to  mourn.  They  have 
great  pow-wows  here,  and  hold  councils.  Some  of 
the  most  important  decisions,  both  of  trade  and 
hunting  and  war,  have  been  made  on  this  hill.' 

"  'What's  the  name  of  it?'  said  Vrooman. 

"  '  Genundewa,'  said  Hanyari. 

"  '  Oh,  yes,'  said  Vrooman ;  '  I  know  that.  It  means 
the  big  hill.  But  why  is  it  so  bare?  From  top  to 
bottom  toward  the  lake,  there  is  hardly  a  tree.  It 
looks  as  if  your  Hawenniyu  had  tobogganed  down 
on  a  big  rock  and  scraped  it  bare.  How  came  it  to 
be  so  bald  ? ' 

" '  Oh,   I  have  heard  the   Senecas   tell  that  once, 


CANANDAIGUA    AND    HONEOYE 

when  they  had  a  stockade  on  this  hill,  there  was  a 
great  serpent  made  by  the  evil  spirit  Ha-ne-go-ate-ge, 
who  wanted  to  destroy  the  Seneca  people,  and  he 
frightened  them  so  that  they  all  ran  inside  the  stock 
ade.  After  driving  them  all  in,  he  coiled  himself 
around,  and,  his  head  and  his  tail  meeting  at  the  gate, 
he  lay  there,  keeping  up  such  a  cloud  of  his  poison 
ous  breath  that  none  dared  to  go  out,  while  all 
were  more  or  less  stupefied,  as  if  they  had  been 
filled  with  fire-water.  Finally  some  of  the  leading 
men  planned  a  way  of  escape ;  but  they  were  not 
smart  enough  for  the  serpent.  Seizing  their  weapons 
and  cooking  utensils,  they  thought  to  walk  out  of 
the  open  gate  so  noiselessly  that  the  serpent 
would  not  awaken  from  the  torpor  in  which  he 
seemed  to  have  fallen.  Instead  of  this,  the  serpent 
had  opened  his  great  mouth  in  front  of  the  gate, 
and  they,  going  out  at  night,  thought  they  were 
walking  down  hill,  when  in  reality  they  had  gone 
right  down  the  throat  of  the  reptile  and  into  his 
stomach. 

"  '  This  would  have  been  the  end  of  the  tribe,  but, 
fortunately,  a  boy  and  a  girl  had  been  forgotten  and 
left  in  the  villages  outside  the  fort.  To  them  the 
Great  Spirit  spoke,  telling  the  boy  to  make  a  bow 
and  arrows  out  of  a  certain  kind  of  tree  in  the  swamp. 
Then  they  were  to  go  up  behind,  and  send  the  shaft 
in  such  a  way  that  it  would  strike  the  serpent's  flesh 
under  its  scales.  The  brave  did  as  he  was  told. 


228    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Stealthily  approaching  the  serpent,  he  sent  his  poison 
shaft  into  the  soft  flesh. 

" '  Immediately  the  serpent,  writhing  in  pain, 
straightened  itself  out  and  slid  down  the  hill,  level 
ling  the  trees  and  hiccoughing  as  it  went.  It  was  in 
such  a  terrible  sickness  that  it  dropped  out  of  its 
mouth  all  the  heads  of  the  Senecas  which  it  had 
swallowed ;  and  these,  all  rolling  together,  fell  down 
into  the  lake,  forming  the  very  stones  which  may 
now  be  seen  lying  in  the  water.  Of  the  blood  of  the 
serpent  were  created  other  little  snakes,  which  crawled 
off  into  the  woods  and  waters. 

" '  From  the  boy  and  girl,  another  race  of  Seneca 
Indians  followed,  and  gradually  the  land  was  over 
spread,  until  the  great  tribe  has  become  what  it  is 
now.' 

"  '  Well,'  said  Vrooman,  '  that  was  a  very  industri 
ous  serpent.  Are  any  other  wonderful  things  credited 
to  him?' 

"  '  Oh,  yes,'  said  Hanyari,  '  you  know  our  Oneida 
talk  is  a  little  different  both  from  that  of  the  Mo 
hawks  and  the  Onondagas,  and  this  serpent  is  the 
cause  of  the  difference  ;  for  at  first  all  the  redmen 
spoke  one  tongue,  but  it  was  the  serpent  that  in  some 
way  divided  them,  so  that  they  could  not  understand 
one  another.' 

"'Oh,  then,'  said  Vrooman,  'here,  then,  is  the 
Iroquois  Tower  of  Babel.' 

"  '  Yes,  I  understand,'  said  Hanyari ;  '  and,  what  is 


CANANDAIGUA    AND    HONEOYE  22Q 

more,  the  Senecas  claim  to  have  a  language  that  was 
first  of  all  spoken.  They  say  that  they  speak  the 
original  in  its  purity,  which  we  Oneidas  and  Mohawks 
have  confused.  However,  the  Onondagas  laugh  at 
the  Senecas,  for  they  consider  that  theirs  is  the  first 
and  best.' 

"  During  the  telling  of  Hanyari' s  stories,  in  spite 
of  fire  and  smoke,  the  mosquitoes  were  large  and 
lively.  What  was  very  surprising,  they  seemed  to 
enjoy  drilling  and  draining  the  seasoned  riflemen,  so 
inured  to  the  woods  and  swamps,  as  they  did  me," 
wrote  Herman  Clute. 

"  '  How  on  earth  did  the  mosquito  originate,  in 
Indian  notion  ? '  asked  Vrooman. 

" '  I'll  tell  you,'  said  Hanyari.  '  I  don't  know  how 
the  first  one  came  into  the  world,  but  we  know  how 
the  little  ones  that  bite  us  got  here.  They  came 
from  the  Onondagas.' 

" '  Oh,  that's  an  Oneida  story,  making  a  rival  tribe 
responsible  for  such  pests.  Always  a  rap  at  the 
Onondagas,  I  see,'  laughed  Vrooman. 

'"Well,  I  have  been  told,'  said  Hanyari,  'that  a 
long  time  ago,  the  Holder  of  the  Heavens  came  down 
to  their  great  fortified  castle,  to  pay  a  visit  to  the  chief 
of  the  Onondagas.  Looking  out,  he  saw  an  enormous 
mosquito,  as  long  as  a  pine  tree,  flying  around  the 
fort  and  getting  ready  to  do  what  he  had  often  done 
before.  It  had  attacked  not  only  squaws  and  pap- 
pooses,  but  many  strong  men,  poking  each  one  with 


23O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

its  big  bill,  and  then  going  for  another  victim,  making 
a  meal  out  of  eight  or  ten  at  once  and  then  flying 
away.  After  sucking  their  blood,  it  left  them  lying 
on  the  ground.  The  warriors  were  unable  to  kill  the 
pest  with  arrows  or  destroy  it  when  asleep,  so  they 
had  prayed  the  Holder  of  the  Heavens  to  come  to 
them  and  help  them. 

" '  Seeing  the  plight  of  his  children,  the  Great  One 
attacked  the  monster,  but  found  that  it  flew  so  fast 
that  he  was  kept  several  days  chasing  it.  Finally 
coming  up  to  it,  he  discovered  that  the  flying  monster 
had  led  him  round  and  round  to  the  place  whence  they 
had  started.  But  when  right  toward  the  edge  of 
the  Lake  Onondaga,  he  struck  it  a  blow  with  his 
tomahawk  and  killed  it.  Thinking  that  he  had 
entirely  delivered  his  children  of  the  pest,  he  let 
his  body  lie  there,  but,  lo  and  behold !  the  blood 
of  the  mosquito  ran  out  over  the  ground,  and  this, 
under  the  sunshine,  turned  into  little  mosquitoes, 
and  so  the  world  is  still  cursed  with  them.  To 
this  day,  this  lake  shore  is  called  "the  mosquito's 
bed." ' 

"  By  this  time  the  horn  sounded  '  taps,'  and  at  4.30 
A.M.  the  same  instrument  called  reveille.  The  whole 
army  was  in  motion  as  early  as  six  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  Saturday,  September  i  i.th.  A  march 
of  fourteen  miles  brought  us  to  the  Indian  town 
of  Honeoye.  Concerning  this  spot,  the  Iroquois 
traditions  tell  of  war  and  slaughter,  in  which 


CANANDAIGUA    AND    HONEOYE  23! 

many  fingers  especially  were  cut  off,  as  the  name 
signifies. 

"  One  of  the  most  terrible  battles  ever  fought  be 
tween  hostile  tribes  on  this  continent  was  that  when 
the  Senecas  met  their  ancient  but  now  banished  foes, 
the  Kah-gwas,  a  tribe  that  had  emigrated  from  the 
south  and  west  and  settled  near  the  foot  of  Lake 
Erie,  where  they  grew  in  strength  and  became  very 
numerous.  According  to  the  usual  Indian  custom 
on  such  occasions,  the  Kah-gwa  women  had  made 
great  numbers  of  moccasins  with  which  to  shoe  the 
captives  which  they  expected  were  to  be  taken.  So 
the  women  accompanied  the  warriors  to  within  a 
short  distance  of  Honeoye  Lake.  The  battle  raged 
nearly  four  days.  In  those  days  no  firearms  were 
used.  The  Indians  on  either  side,  dressed  in  bark 
armor  and  helmets,  with  only  bows  and  arrows  and 
stone-headed  lances  and  clubs,  fought  out  in  the  open. 
The  younger  braves  were  set  in  the  front  of  the  battle 
and  the  middle-aged  warriors  farther  back.  Both 
sides  fought  until  the  stream  which  they  charged 
over,  back  and  forth,  flowed  red.  The  Senecas 
nearly  exterminated  the  Kah-gwas,  who  fled  to  the 
southwest,  and  nothing  more  has  been  heard  of 
them. 

"The  village  in  1779  consisted  of  twenty  houses 
at  the  foot  of  the  lake.  It  was  on  all  sides,  except 
toward  the  water,  surrounded  by  corn-fields.  The 
men  joked  about  honey,  but  we  found  neither  hives 


232    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

nor  bees  there,"  continues  Herman  Clute.  "  Our  way 
went  through  fields  of  grass,  with  very  little  timber, 
and  evidently  much  of  what  we  saw  was  fallow  ground. 
There  were  plenty  of  wild  flowers.  I  heard  one 
Yankee,  who  had  punned  on  the  sound  of  honey, 
twitting  a  New  Yorker  for  moping  after  his  lady-love 
who  lived  at  Saugerties,  New  York,  which  the  New 
Hampshire  man  pronounced  Sugar-ties,  telling  him 
he  ought  to  emigrate  to  this  place  when  the  war  was 
over. 

"  Supposing  the  army  to  be  about  twenty-five  miles 
from  the  Genesee  Castle,  the  general  determined  to 
leave  here  his  cattle  and  horses,  with  all  the  sick,  the 
lame,  and  the  lazy, —  about  three  hundred  in  number. 
So  the  strongest  house  in  the  Indian  village  was 
selected,  and  its  walls  were  strengthened  on  the 
inside  with  kegs,  casks,  and  bags  of  flour.  Two 
port-holes  were  cut  into  the  sides,  out  of  which  the 
two  three-pounder  guns  poked  their  yellow,  brass 
noses.  Then,  chopping  down  the  apple  trees,  we 
made  an  abatis  and  ditch  about  the  house.  So  here 
in  the  wilderness  is  another  of  the  three  forts  our 
men  have  built  between  Wyoming  and  Seneca  Castle, 
which  latter  place  is  the  goal  of  our  expedition. 
This,  some  call  only  a  '  post.'  I  name  it  '  Fort 
Honeoye.' 

"  There  are  three  lakes  here,  lying  right  in  a  row 
together,  —  Honeoye,  Canadice,  and  Conesus.  An 
Indian  village  of  eighteen  houses  lies  east  of  the 


CANANDAIGUA  AND  HONEOYE         233 

Conesus  Lake  inlet,  with  the  usual  large  corn-fields 
all  around.  We  encamped  on  the  flats.  Here  have 
lived  two  persons  of  importance  in  Iroquois  land, 
one  black,  the  other  red,  —  a  negro  called  Captain 
Sunfish,  who  has  made  much  money  and  has  great 
influence,  and  the  Seneca  chief,  Big  Tree,  who,  as 
we  used  to  suppose,  was  a  friend  of  Washington  and 
Congress.  Mr.  Vrooman  thinks  that  he  was  not  at 
heart  a  traitor  to  us,  but  was  our  friend  until  he 
found  the  war  sentiment  of  his  tribe  too  strong  for 
him.  It  was  a  game  of  rouge  et  noir,  as  our  Yankee 
joker  says. 

"  Evidently  the  Indian  spies  are  very  near  us,  for 
I  myself  have  seen  their  tracks  in  the  fresh  mud. 
Vrooman  surmises  that  Brant  and  Butler  have  been 
reinforced,  and  that  we  may  have  a  battle  pretty 
soon.  So  be  it ;  we  are  ready  for  them,  and  even  to 
go  to  Niagara. 

"The  general  has  ordered  Vrooman  to  remain 
here  at  the  fort,  as  the  chief  scout.  He  is  both 
happy  and  sorry,  for  his  joy  at  regaining  his  wife 
is  tempered  with  regret  and  anxiety  as  to  the  fate 
of  his  sister. 

"We  have  four  days'  rations  with  us,  and  will 
march  to-morrow  against  the  largest  town,  the  capi 
tal,  indeed,  of  the  Senecas,  the  largest  of  all  the  six 
tribes  of  the  Iroquois.  After  destroying  this,  we  are 
likely  to  turn  our  faces  homeward,  for  the  frost  will 
soon  be  along,  and  we  cannot  live  on  succotash. 


234         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Yet  we  have  not  found  Mary  Vrooman,  and  neither 
her  brother  nor  I  wish  to  go  home  till  we  at  least 
know  whether  she  is  alive  or  dead.  All  of  us  hope 
to  rescue  more  captives.  Perhaps  we  will  have  a 
battle.  Vrooman  thinks  the  enemy  will  be  in  force 
near  Conesus  Lake,  just  at  the  place  we  are  to  reach 
to-morrow." 


CHAPTER   XX 

BOYD    AND    THE    GROVELAND    AMBUSCADE 

VROOMAN'S  surmise  as  to  the  enemy's  move 
ments  after  the  battle  of  Newtown  was  true. 
Brant  and  Butler  retreated  until  near  the  site  where 
now  stands  Avon  in  Livingston  County.  Here  they 
were  joined  by  fresh  reinforcements  of  Indians  and 
Canadian  rangers.  Butler,  greatly  encouraged,  now 
planned  to  "  Braddock "  Sullivan's  army.  At  the 
head  of  Conesus  Lake,  where  the  soil  is  soft  and 
miry,  the  Indian  path  to  the  big  town  near  the  Gene- 
see,  following  almost  the  present  roadway,  crossed 
the  inlet  by  a  rude  bridge,  which  Butler  had  ordered 
to  be  destroyed,  but  the  work  was  only  partially 
done. 

West  of  Conesus  Lake  was  a  steep  bluff,  with 
deep  ravines  cut  in  it  by  the  rains  of  centuries.  A 
path  to  the  hilltop  ran  between  two  of  these  ravines. 
As  the  land  above  the  lake  was  covered  with  forests, 
it  was  possible  to  post  a  large  body  of  men  in  the 
brushwood  on  the  crests  of  the  ridge  and  in  the 
ravines,  and  thus  flank  an  army  that  would  pass 
over  the  path  to  the  town. 

23S 


236    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Hence  it  was  that  here,  on  the  I2th  and  I3th  of 
September,  1779,  making  almost  the  exact  duplicate 
of  Braddock's  field  in  Pennsylvania,  the  servants  of 
King  George,  red,  white,  and  black,  were  posted, 
awaiting  the  approach  of  Sullivan's  Continentals. 

Thinking  that  he  was  near  the  "  Western  Door  of 
the  Confederacy,"  which  he  hoped  to  capture,  Gen 
eral  Sullivan  sent  forward  Lieutenant  Thomas  Boyd, 
on  the  night  of  the  I2th,  to  reconnoitre.  He  directed 
him  to  take  but  three  or  four  riflemen,  make  a  rapid 
examination  of  the  country,  and  report  at  sunrise  next 
morning.  As  the  army,  having  left  their  base  of  sup 
plies,  had  but  four  days'  rations  when  they  left  Ho- 
neoye,  every  moment  was  precious. 

Were  the  heads  of  the  young  Continentals  swelled 
by  the  ease  of  their  victory  at  Newtown  ?  Had  they 
begun  to  despise  their  enemy,  because  no  hostile 
shot  had  been  fired  since  that  success  so  easily  won  ? 
Did  they  think  the  Senecas  were  so  cowed  that  they 
would  always  flee  before  the  riflemen  ?  However  we 
explain  it,  Lieutenant  Boyd,  twenty-two  years  old,  a 
Pennsylvanian  of  superb  physique,  fine  manners,  and 
brave  even  to  recklessness,  instead  of  taking  but  four 
men  as  ordered,  allowed  volunteers  to  join  him,  eight 
of  whom  were  musketmen,  and  two  of  them,  red  allies, 
one  an  Oneida  and  the  other  a  Stockbridge  Indian, 
making  a  party  of  twenty-nine  in  all.  No  one  can 
believe  that  Boyd  increased  his  force  because  he 
feared  to  go  with  a  quartette  only.  No,  the  proba- 


BOYD    AND    THE    GROVELAND    AMBUSCADE          237 

bilities  are  that  so  many  volunteers  were  eager  to  fol 
low  such  an  intrepid  leader,  that  he  exceeded  his 
instructions  in  order  to  gratify  their  martial  valor. 
Many  young  men  who  had  not  even  been  in  the  bat 
tle  at  Newtown  and  were  still  thirsting  for  adventure, 
hated  to  go  back  home  without  having  fired  at  least 
one  hostile  shot  against  their  country's  foes. 

Nobody  knew  exactly  where  the  big  Indian  town 
was  located.  The  so-called  maps  were  farces,  and 
for  want  of  exact  knowledge  all  leaders  were  equally 
at  fault.  It  was  a  case  of  blindman's  buff  in  the 
wilderness.  Sullivan  did  the  best  that  mortal  could 
do,  and,  apart  from  his  insubordination,  Boyd  did 
likewise.  In  the  darkness  the  lieutenant  and  his 
company  crossed  the  outlet  of  Conesus  Lake,  went 
north  along  the  base  of  the  hill  for  a  quarter  of  a 
mile.  He  then  climbed  up  the  steep  hillside  and 
moved  westward  along  the  Indian  path.  In  doing 
this,  Boyd  actually  passed  Butler's  right  wing  with 
out  either  party  knowing  the  other's  whereabouts. 
About  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Sullivan's  camp,  the 
path  forked,  one  trail  passing  to  the  northwest  to 
Little  Beard's  Town  or  the  Genesee  Castle,  the  other, 
which  Boyd,  perhaps  misled  by  his  guides,  took, 
led  to  the  village  on  Canaseraga  Creek,  two  miles 
from  the  Genesee  River. 

Boyd  halted  his  force  and  then  went  in  among  the 
empty  houses,  finding  little  except  baskets  of  common 
utensils,  with  here  and  there  a  scalp  hung  on  the 


238    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

sooty  walls.  Nevertheless,  the  fires  were  still  burn 
ing.  This  showed  that  enemies  could  not  be  far  away 
After  a  time  he  rejoined  his  men,  who  needed  rest. 
Making  concealment  in  the  woods,  he  sent  back 
four  of  his  party  to  report  his  discovery  to  General 
Sullivan. 

Daylight  soon  broke  in  the  eastern  sky,  and 
another  of  the  lovely  days,  for  which  the  late  sum 
mer  and  early  autumn  of  1779  was  as  noted  as  was 
its  terrible  winter  for  its  days  of  storm,  broke  on 
the  glorious  landscape,  then  golden  with  ripened 
grain.  As  the  sun  was  just  beginning  to  tint  the 
clouds,  four  Indians  on  horses  were  seen  riding  into 
the  town.  Boyd  at  once  sent  a  party  to  capture 
them,  but  only  one  was  killed.  The  others,  one  of 
whom  was  wounded,  got  away. 

Boyd  now  began  his  return  march,  sending  out 
flankers  and  keeping  constantly  alert.  After  four 
or  five  miles,  expecting  soon  to  meet  the  army,  Boyd 
halted  and  sent  two  men  forward  to  make  a  further 
report  to  Sullivan.  It  was  evident  that  the  party 
was  now  watched,  and  likely  soon  to  be  called  to 
face  enemies,  for  in  a  few  minutes  the  two  men 
sent  ahead  came  back,  saying  they  had  found  five 
Indians  on  the  path.  So  the  march  was  resumed, 
and  soon  they  saw  the  same  party  of  Indians  and 
fired  at  them. 

Now,  is  it  not  strange  that,  with  so  much  experi 
ence  of  the  old  Indian  trick  of  pretending  to  retreat 


BOYD    AND    THE    GROVELAND    AMBUSCADE         239 

in  order  to  lure  their  enemies  into  an  ambuscade, 
experienced  Nimrods  like  Boyd  should  want  to  pur 
sue  such  enemies  on  unknown  ground  ?  These  five 
savages  were  as  so  many  decoy  ducks  to  lure  the 
game  into  the  line  of  fire  of  the  war-hunters,  Brant 
and  Butler.  Again  and  again  had  our  frontier  mili 
tia  been  entrapped  into  ambuscade  and  massacre. 
Brave  always,  but  at  times  rash,  Boyd  determined 
to  pursue  them.  Hanyari  earnestly  protested,  advis 
ing  him  not  to  do  so. 

"  They  are  only  the  minnows  which  the  fisherman 
Butler  hopes  we  shall  snap  at  and  bite  on  his  hook, 
that  he  may  string  us  all,"  warned  the  Oneida,  but 
in  vain. 

Hanyari  was  right.  All  the  time  the  Indians 
were  moving  ahead  of  their  pursuers  and  cunningly 
drawing  them  within  the  lines  of  their  hidden  com 
rades.  They  even  allowed  Boyd's  party  to  get 
within  easy  rifle  range  in  order  to  tempt  and  draw 
their  fire,  while  dodging  behind  trees  and  underbrush 
so  as  to  be  really  out  of  danger.  Suddenly,  when 
within  a  half  mile  of  the  crest  of  the  bluff  above  the 
river,  a  little  northeast  of  what  is  now  Groveland, 
New  York,  a  yell,  that  sounded  as  if  hell  had  opened 
all  its  doors  and  let  out  all  its  demons,  broke  on  their 
ears,  and  Boyd's  party  found  themselves  confronted 
by  eight  hundred  Indians  and  Tories.  It  was  as 
one  to  thirty.  For  every  bullet  of  defence,  there  was 
a  shower  of  lead.  In  less  time  than  the  story  requires 


24O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

for  telling,  a  circle  of  fire,  ever  narrowing,  enclosed 
the  band.  The  end  could  not  be  far  off.  The  eager 
Indians,  so  sure  of  their  prey,  approached  so  closely 
that  the  unburned  powder  of  their  guns  was  driven 
into  the  flesh  of  Boyd's  men,  though  very  many  of 
their  own  number  were  killed,  probably  three  times 
as  many  as  were  in  Boyd's  party. 

We  must  now  go  into  Brant  and  Butler's  camp 
to  see  what  had  happened  there.  After  the  retreat 
from  Newtown,  where  the  British  allies,  red,  white, 
and  black,  were  so  badly  beaten  that  they  "  feared 
the  tops  of  the  tall  grass,"  they  recruited  near  Cone- 
sus  Lake.  Yet,  although  reinforced  by  hundreds  of 
warriors  from  the  Six  Nations  and  by  rangers  from 
Canada,  not  a  hostile  musket  was  fired  against  Sul 
livan's  victorious  army,  until  in  this  "  Groveland 
ambuscade."  Yet  the  royal  expresses  were  busy. 
All  along  the  path  spies  had  kept  watch  from  the  hill 
tops,  and  runners  had  brought  the  news  thrice  daily, 
and  sometimes  hourly,  to  Brant  and  Butler,  of  Sul 
livan's  movements. 

Having  seen  the  building  of  the  fort  at  Honeoye, 
and  noticing  that  no  wagon  or  long  trains  of  pack 
horses  or  cattle  were  with  the  army,  and  only  three 
of  the  lightest  guns,  the  British  leaders  made  up 
their  minds  that  the  Continentals  had  no  food  or 
supplies  beyond  what  they  carried  on  their  backs. 
They  therefore  deliberately  resolved  to  strike  a  blow 
and  risk  a  battle.  After  a  long  council,  in  which 


BOYD    AND    THE    GROVELAND    AMBUSCADE          24! 

the  orators  among  the  younger  Indians,  that  had  not 
yet  faced  coehorn  or  cannon,  were  particularly  elo 
quent,  the  usual  strategy  of  ambuscade  was  decided 
upon.  The  spot  most  likely  to  secure  utter  ruin  to 
the  Americans  was  selected  and  occupied  near 
Conesus  Lake. 

So,  on  that  morning  of  September  I3th,  1779, 
the  Canadian  rangers  and  the  braves  of  the  Senecas 
and  allied  tribes  were  thickly  posted  in  the  ravines 
and  on  the  edges  of  the  hill  slope.  Wherever  stones 
or  underbrush  could  hide  the  tawny  warriors,  whose 
buckskin  shirts  looked  so  much  like  the  rocks,  or  the 
Johnson  Greens  could  lie  in  the  tall  grass,  to  be  dis 
covered  only  by  the  keenest  of  eyes,  there  were  the 
servants  of  King  George  and  his  corrupt  Parliament 
posted  to  kill  the  "  anti-revolutionary  "  founders  and 
defenders  of  the  United  States  of  America.  It 
seemed  as  certain  that  the  Continentals  this  time 
would  be  as  surely  "  Braddocked,"  as  that  the  au 
tumn  winds  moving  through  the  trees  loaded  with 
ripe  apples  would  cause  them  to  drop. 

Sullivan's  army,  soon  after  beginning  their  march 
at  seven  o'clock  on  the  13th,  came  to  an  Indian  town 
of  eighteen  houses  situated  near  Conesus  Lake. 
While  with  sword,  knife,  and  axe  the  soldiers  levelled 
the  corn  for  the  fire,  the  pioneers  began  at  once  to 
rebuild  the  bridge  over  the  creek  or  outlet  of  the 
lake.  To  protect  them  in  their  work,  Sullivan  posted 
a  line  of  sentries  on  the  farther  side  of  the  water,  up 


242         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

and  down  the  hard  land  between  the  morass  and  the 
hill  crest.  While  the  bridge  makers  plied  their  tools, 
the  sentries  paced  up  and  down,  and  the  surveyors 
and  chain-men  went  still  farther  westward  beyond 
the  pickets,  where  they  were  busy  measuring  dis 
tances.  All  this  time  the  white  leaders,  Butler  and 
MacDonald,  with  their  glasses,  and  hundreds  of  pairs 
of  keen  black  Indian  eyes,  were  watching  from  the  hill 
crest  above,  the  work  below.  It  must  have  been  hard 
for  the  individual  braves  to  resist  the  temptation  to 
crawl  forward  and  fire  on  the  sentries  below.  Never 
theless,  Butler  held  them  back,  for  he  hoped  to  strike 
and  defeat  the  whole  of  Sullivan's  force  as  it  defiled 
in  a  long  line  over  the  bridge  and  narrow  path. 
Would  he  not  have  them  hopelessly  muddled  between 
the  advantageous  hill  crest  and  the  deep  creek  ? 

Suddenly  Butler  heard  firing  on  his  left  flank. 
This  surprised  him  very  much.  He  could  not  tell 
what  it  meant.  He  knew  nothing  about  Boyd's 
party,  and,  if  he  had,  he  would  have  sent  only  a  party 
of  a  hundred  or  two,  to  attend  to  such  small  game, 
which  he  could  surely  capture.  The  memories  of 
Newtown,  the  vision  of  the  New  Hampshire  Conti 
nentals  bursting,  as  it  were,  out  of  the  clouds  on  his 
flank,  were  very  vivid.  Butler  knew  that  he  had  an 
able  foe  to  contend  with,  ever  alert  and  fertile  in 
resources.  Was  he  again  to  be  outwitted  ?  Had 
Sullivan  amused  him  with  a  show  of  bridge-building, 
while  sending  a  brigade  of  men  that  had  risen  early 


BOYD    AND    THE    GROVELAND    AMBUSCADE         243 

in  the  morning  to  strike  his  rear  and  drive  him  down 
the  hill  into  the  morass  and  into  the  jaws  of  the  can 
non  and  the  main  army  ? 

While  thus  his  active  brain  churned  in  anxious 
thought,  the  firing  became  so  very  lively  that  he  felt 
assured  that  Sullivan  was  practising  the  same  tactics 
as  when  Poor's  brigade  struck  his  flank  at  Newtown. 
No  time  must  be  lost,  so  he  ordered  at  least  half  his 
whole  force  to  face  about,  deploy  in  semicircle,  and 
then  surround  what  he  supposed  to  be  the  riflemen 
skirmishers  of  a  larger  body,  hoping  to  defeat  this 
supposed  flanking  force  before  the  bridge  was  fin 
ished,  and  the  cannon  and  main  body  of  Americans 
could  get  over  the  stream.  Then  he  would  call  his 
men,  flushed  with  victory,  for  the  capital  work  in 
hand. 

Thus  Butler  lost  all  chances  of  victory,  for  the 
twenty-five  Americans  had  found  shelter  in  a  clump 
of  trees,  and,  firing  unerringly  from  behind  the 
trunks,  sold  their  lives  dearly.  Killing  perhaps  two 
or  three  times  their  number,  they  also  gave  time  to 
Sullivan's  main  army  to  form.  The  enemy  closed 
round  them,  getting  nearer  and  nearer ;  and  then, 
rushing  upon  them,  fired  in  their  faces,  one  after  the 
other.  All  of  the  twenty-five  were  slain,  except  Boyd 
and  his  sergeant,  Michael  Parker,  who  were  captured 
alive.  Among  the  dead  was  the  brave  Oneida  chief, 
Hanyari.  After  Boyd  had  refused  to  give  any  in 
formation  in  regard  to  the  Continental  army,  both 


244         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

were  delivered  over  to  the  Indians  and  to  incredible 
tortures.  Goaded  to  desperation  by  the  loss  of  their 
homes  and  farms,  the  Senecas  looked  upon  Boyd  as 
the  head  and  front  of  their  woes.  They  gave  vent  to 
those  brutal  instincts  which  a  savage  man  has  in  com 
mon  with  the  wasp,  the  rattlesnake,  the  panther, 
and  the  wolf.  They  revelled  in  mutilation,  as  if 
they  were  in  a  Spanish  Inquisition  ;  their  chief,  Little 
Beard,  being  master  of  ceremonies. 

Butler  gnashed  his  teeth  in  rage  to  see  his  high 
hopes  once  more,  as  at  Newtown,  crushed.  A  paltry 
band  of  twenty-five  Americans  had  occupied  half  his 
force,  given  the  alarm  to  Sullivan,  and  jeoparded 
the  day. 

Yet,  though  so  much  time  had  been  lost,  and  his 
plans  disarranged  by  the  fight  with  Boyd,  he  had  not 
been  flanked  as  he  feared.  There  were  still  several 
hundred  Tories  and  Indians  on  the  hill  crest ;  the 
corduroy  road  over  the  morass,  and  the  bridge,  were 
far  from  complete,  and  the  special  scouts  whom  he 
had  sent  out  assured  him  that  all  of  Sullivan's  men, 
except  the  sentries  and  pickets,  were  still  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  stream.  Hence  there  was  no 
danger  in  his  rear.  So  there  was  still  a  prospect  of 
victory  in  a  stand-up  fight. 


CHAPTER    XXI 

ABOUT  FACE! 

IN  fact,  Butler  might  have  re-formed  his  men  and 
perhaps  "  Braddocked  "  Sullivan,  had  it  not  been 
for  another  happy  accident  which  contributed  to  the 
benefit  of  the  American  side.  Just  what  that  acci 
dent  was,  let  our  young  soldier  tell  in  the  letter  which 
he  wrote  to  his  mother,  from  Fort  Reed,  when  the 
army  halted  on  its  return  march. 

"  DEAR  MOTHER  :  Well,  we  are  on  our  way  home 
again.  We  have  actually  been  on  the  march  east 
ward  for  four  days.  Our  general  would  certainly 
have  gone  to  Niagara,  and  our  fellows  would  have 
captured  the  place,  I  know,  except  that  our  provi 
sions  were  really  all  gone.  The  night  before  we 
reached  the  end  of  our  journey,  and  the  night  after, 
we  actually  heard  the  British  evening  gun.  When 
we  got  near  the  last  of  the  great  chain  of  lakes  from 
Otsego  to  Conesus  (I  have  seen  them  all  now),  the 
body  had  to  halt  and  build  a  road  through  the  morass 
and  fix  up  the  bridge  that  used  to  continue  the  road 
over  the  stream  which  is  the  outlet  of  the  lake. 

245 


246         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Although  we  did  not  know  or  suspect  it,  the  enemy 
were  hiding  on  the  hill  up  which  we  had  to  go  to  get 
to  the  famous  Seneca  Castle.  Lieutenant  Boyd,  com 
manding  his  scouting  party,  went  forward  the  night 
before,  but  early  the  next  morning  got  into  an  am 
buscade.  Some  of  his  party  escaped,  but  most  of 
them  were  killed,  and  Boyd  and  his  sergeant  taken 
alive  and  tortured. 

"  You  can  imagine  how  curious  the  situation  was, 
at  sunrise  on  that  morning  of  the  I3th.  An  army  of 
about  fifteen  hundred  British  and  savages  lay  hidden 
in  the  grass  and  behind  the  trees,  within  a  musket 
shot  of  our  pioneers,  who  were  making  the  road  and 
building  a  bridge.  Boyd's  party  of  twenty-nine  men 
had  actually  passed  close  to  the  enemy  without  either 
party  knowing  it,  but  when  Boyd,  on  coming  back, 
was  enticed  into  the  Indian  lines  and  got  into  a  big 
fight,  Butler  must  have  thought  himself  flanked,  and 
ordered  out  half  his  men.  Those  who  escaped  of 
Boyd's  detachment  say  there  were  about  eight  hun 
dred  Indians  that  surrounded  them,  so  that  seven  or 
eight  hundred  more  must  have  been  left  on  the  hills, 
waiting  for  us. 

"Among  those  slain  was  Hanyari,  our  brave  and 
wise  Oneida  comrade.  I  grieve  over  his  loss,  and 
Vrooman  will  be  a  sad  man  when  he  hears  the  news. 

"  Now,  it  was  my  duty  to  be  sentinel  that  morning, 
and  the  general  posted  a  line  of  us  along  the  bottom 
of  the  hills  between  the  crest  and  the  swamp.  I 


ABOUT    FACE  !  247 

imagine  that  the  savages  hiding  foremost  in  the 
grass  could  easily  have  picked  us  off,  by  firing  from 
the  hilltop  just  above  us,  but  they  had  their  orders 
not  to,  and  did  not.  Pretty  soon  I  saw  Lieutenant 
Lodge,  with  his  four  or  five  chain-bearers,  cross  over 
the  stream  and  begin  the  work  of  measurement  on 
the  Indian  path.  This  Mr.  Lodge  is  a  very  fine 
gentleman.  I  have  made  his  acquaintance  and  been 
well  treated  by  him.  He  and  his  men  have  meas 
ured  every  mile  from  Easton,  and  he  has  shown  me 
some  of  the  maps  he  has  made.  The  party  of  sur 
veyors  soon  passed  beyond  me,  although  I  was  at  the 
line  of  sentries,  and  they  even  went  up  the  hill  out  of 
sight. 

"  I  thought  he  was  running  a  risk,  but  it  was  none 
of  my  business,  so  I  walked  up  and  down  the  distance 
assigned  me  by  the  officer  of  the  guard,  until  sud 
denly  I  heard  firing  to  the  westward.  I  cocked  my 
gun  and  held  it  ready  for  use.  I  trembled  at  first, 
but  very  soon  was  calm  again.  In  a  minute  or  two 
out  came  the  surveyor  and  chain-bearers,  one  less  in 
number  than  when  they  went  into  the  woods.  They 
were  running  for  their  lives,  and  a  dozen  Indians 
after  them  with  tomahawks,  one  of  whom  threw  his 
hatchet  at  Lieutenant  Lodge,  but  it  missed  him. 
The  other  savages  fell  back,  but  a  big,  brawny  red 
fellow,  who  had  a  brass  medal  on  his  breast,  kept  on 
chasing  him.  He  was  just  raising  his  tomahawk  to 
let  fly  at  Lodge,  I  suppose,  when  I  found  he  was 


248          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

within  range.  Taking  aim  as  coolly  as  if  I  were 
shooting  a  squirrel  on  a  tree  trunk,  I  aimed  at  the 
medal,  and  fired.  The  Indian  tumbled  backward 
dead,  and  Lieutenant  Lodge  got  into  our  lines 
safely. 

"  Now  all  this,  as  General  Sullivan  has  himself 
told  me,  upset  the  plans  of  Butler,  and  demoralized 
the  men  hidden  on  the  crest;  for  by  this  time  the 
bridge  was  sufficiently  completed  to  allow  Hand's 
light  troops  to  cross  over  it  on  a  run.  It  would  have 
done  you  good  to  see  how  those  Pennsylvanians 
rushed  over  the  log  road  through  the  swamp.  They 
stepped  neatly  over  the  tree  trunks  and  rapidly  over 
the  bridge.  Then,  with  cheers,  they  moved  in  the 
most  lively  way  up  the  hill.  Although  Butler  was 
actually  at  that  moment  coming  back  with  his  rein 
forcements,  and  his  Indians  had  the  scalps  of  all  of 
Boyd's  party  that  had  not  escaped,  fifteen  in  number, 
he  could  not  get  his  rangers  and  savages,  whom  he 
had  left  on  the  hill  crest  and  in  the  ravines,  into  good 
form  again.  They  were  in  as  much  disorder  as  a 
flock  of  scared  wild  pigeons,  and  they  did  not  dare  to 
stand  before  Hand's  brigade.  I  think  the  glimpse 
they  got  of  the  shining  brass  cannon  moving  over 
the  bridge  completed  their  confusion.  '  They  didn't 
even  take  time  to  put  their  packs  on  their  shoulders. 
Even  the  white  men  left  their  hats  behind  them ;  so 
that,  when  our  whole  army  had  crossed  over,  we  had 
only  a  promenade  to  the  great  Genesee  Castle. 


ABOUT    FACE  !  249 

"  We  destroyed  the  Indian  town  to  which  Boyd 
had  gone,  after  we  had  got  over  the  river  and 
marched  several  miles.  It  had  twenty-two  houses. 
One  of  them  was  already  burned,  for  in  it  the 
enemy's  dead,  killed  in  the  fight  with  Boyd,  had 
been  piled  up  on  timber  and  then  all  was  set  on  fire. 
Toward  sundown  our  advance  guard  found  the  red 
skins  and  Canadians  apparently  ready  for  another 
battle,  for  they  were  drawn  up  in  line.  For  a  while 
it  looked  as  though  there  would  be  another  fight, 
but  just  as  soon  as  the  general  had  started  off  his 
flanking  divisions,  they  were  so  afraid  of  being  struck 
in  the  rear  that,  without  firing  one  gun  or  giving  us 
a  chance  to  fire  one,  they  retreated.  We  camped  on 
the  spot,  and  the  next  day  it  took  two  thousand  men 
six  hours  to  level  the  tall  grain,  eight  or  nine  feet  high, 
to  the  ground. 

"  The  next  day  about  noon  we  started  to  reach  the 
great  Genesee  town.  Such  grass  as  grows  in  this 
valley  I  never  saw  before.  In  moving  through  it  we 
could  see  only  the  shining  tips  of  the  bayonets  of  the 
regiments  near  us.  Our  general  had  ordered  the 
army  to  march  in  the  same  order  as  laid  down  on 
paper,  so  we  trampled  down  the  grass  in  a  swath 
half  a  mile  wide.  A  wonderfully  flat  country  it  is, 
without  hills  or  bushes,  and  only  here  and  there  a 
clump  of  trees.  On  coming  to  the  river,  we  found 
it  deep  and  wide,  and  too  big  to  be  bridged.  So  we 
locked  our  arms  together  and  crossed  in  platoons, 


25O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

though,  on  account  of  the  warm  day,  we  were  well 
dried  before  evening.  This  is  Little  Beard's  Town, 
named  after  the  famous  Seneca  chief,  and  the  largest 
I  ever  saw.  There  were  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
eight  houses,  and  some  of  them  very  much  finer 
than  the  average  farmer's  log  cabin  in  the  upper 
Mohawk  Valley.  The  savages  called  this  place  the 
'  Western  Door'  of  their  '  Long  House.' 

"  Three  things  happened  to  us  while  we  were  at 
this  town  which  I  shall  never  forget.  The  first  was, 
the  discovery  by  Mr.  Sanborn,  in  Clinton's  brigade,  of 
the  mangled  bodies  of  Lieutenant  Boyd  and  ser 
geant.  The  heads  lay  some  distance  away  from  the 
bodies,  for  the  dogs  had  run  away  with  them  and 
partly  eaten  them.  I  could  not  tell  you  all  the  hor 
rible  mutilation  which  these  men  had  to  submit  to, 
besides  their  tortures.  I  never  saw  anything  like  it. 
It  reminded  me  of  what  I  had  so  often  read  of  the 
Spanish  Inquisition,  from  which  our  ancestors  suf 
fered  when  King  Philip  of  Spain  tried  to  change  our 
fathers  from  being  Bible  readers.  It  made  our  men 
determined  to  fight  to  the  death,  rather  than  be  taken 
prisoners  by  such  allies  of  the  king  of  Great  Britain. 
Boyd's  men  were  very  fond  of  him,  and  his  own  rifle 
company  were  sent  to  bury  him.  I  saw  them  dig 
ging  the  graves  under  a  wild  plum  tree  which  stood 
near  the  forks  of  two  streams. 

"  The  other  incident  was  much  pleasanter,  I  can 
tell  you.  Last  November  the  Indians  captured,  near 


ABOUT    FACE !  2$ I 

Nanticoke,  down  in  Pennsylvania,  a  woman  and  her 
little  child,  having  shot  her  husband  and  father,  and 
she  was  brought  to  this  place.  I  talked  with  her, 
but  she  could  not  tell  me  anything  about  Mary  Vroo- 
man,  though  she  had  seen  many  other  captives,  both 
male  and  female.  She  escaped  very  easily,  for  the 
Indians  were  in  such  a  hurry  to  move  toward  Niag 
ara,  which  is  eighty  miles  distant,  that  they  paid  no 
attention  to  her,  and  so  she  hid  herself  and  came 
within  our  lines. 

"  The  next  morning  we  were  up  before  sunrise 
and  breakfasted  quickly.  Then  the  whole  three 
thousand  of  us  went  into  the  corn-fields  to  cut  down 
the  tall  stalks,  chop  down  the  fruit  trees,  and  make 
mighty  heaps  of  the  timber  and  fodder.  Then  we 
set  the  whole  on  fire.  About  twenty  thousand 
bushels  of  corn  were  destroyed  here.  As  for  the 
size  of  the  ears,  I  never  saw  anything  like  them.  We 
think  our  Mohawk  Valley  flats  fat  land,  but  this  is 
far  fatter.  The  New  Hampshire  men,  who  come, 
from  a  pretty  stpny  region,  I  imagine,  could  hardly 
believe  their  eyes  at  seeing  ears  of  corn  twenty-two 
inches  long.  A  great  many  of  them  have  carried 
home  specimen  ears  in  their  knapsacks.  As  for  the 
stalks  of  corn,  they  are  from  twelve  to  fifteen  feet 
high. 

"  The  third  incident  took  place  after  we  had  had 
our  dinner.  Then  we  got  the  most  joyful  order  we 
have  heard  yet.  Some  of  us  would  like  to  have  seen 


252          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Niagara,  but  to  march  there  on  green  victuals  would 
have  been  too  much,  and  we  should  have  starved  on 
our  way  back,  for  our  meat  and  flour  were  wholly 
gone.  So  we  gladly  faced  to  the  right  about,  and 
marched  toward  the  rising  sun. 

"  We  crossed  the  river  again,  and,  as  we  put  on 
our  clothes,  which  we  had  carried  over  our  heads,  I 
don't  think  there  was  ever  a  happier  lot  of  men. 
Our  camp  was  on  the  river  flats.  The  next  day  we 
passed  the  scene  of  Boyd's  big  fight,  and  found  there 
the  bodies  of  fifteen  dead  and  scalped.  I  think  we 
felt  more  sad  over  the  fate  of  Hanyari,  the  Oneida 
chief,  than  for  even  our  own  men.  He  was  a  great 
favorite  with  us. 

"  At  each  Indian  town,  we  have  seen  that  the  poor 
savages  are  in  a  fearfully  dejected  state  of  mind,  and 
I  have  heard  that  they  just  behaved  like  Baal's 
prophets.  The  captive  white  woman  says  that  they 
leap  and  howl  in  anguish  of  mind,  calling  on  their 
gods  to  come  back  from  their  hunting,  or  wake  up 
from  their  sleep  and  to  help  them,  and  drive  back 
the  men  sent  among  them  by  the  Town  Destroyer. 
That  is  the  name  they  give  to  Washington.  Yet 
some  of  their  own  chiefs  who  have  wiped  out  whole 
settlements  are  called  by  the  same  name,  and  Destroy 
Town,  a  Seneca,  is  well  known. 

"  Many  of  the  Senecas  have  no  tobacco  left,  because 
they  have  thrown  it  all  in  the  fires  as  a  sacrifice  to 
their  god  Ha-wen-ni-yu.  I  was  wondering  what  it 


...     A  SHOUT  THAT  WOKE  THE  ECHOES  OF  THE  ROCKS.' 


ABOUT  FACE  !  253 

meant,  when  I  found  two  white  dogs  hung  on  poles 
about  fifteen  feet  high  before  the  council  house  in 
the  big  town.  In  one  place  I  saw  a  war-post  made 
of  a  big  tree,  cut  and  carved,  painted,  and  set  in  the 
ground.  It  was  wrapped  round  with  the  skins  of 
white  dogs,  so  as  to  be  nearly  covered.  These,  I 
was  told,  were  to  appease  their  god,  who  takes  the 
hides  to  make  jacket,  breeches,  tobacco  pouch,  and 
moccasins.  'The  captive  woman  says  that  after  the 
big  battle  at  Newtown,  they  went  at  once  after  two 
dogs  and  killed  them  and  hung  them  up  on  poles, 
all  the  while  beseeching  their  gods  not  to  be  angry 
with  them.  This  seems  to  have  been  done  in  every 
village.  How  terrible  must  their  suffering  of  mind 
have  been ! 

"  At  this  place,  we  had  good  news  from  the  world, 
which  we  had  seemed  to  leave  behind  us,  for  General 
Washington  had  sent  an  express  with  news  that 
Spain  had  declared  war  against  England  and  will 
help  us,  and  that  the  great  Spanish  and  French 
fleets  have  made  a  junction  at  sea  and  will  sail 
together  to  our  shores.  I  forgot  to  tell  you  that 
most  of  the  men  we  left  at  Honeoye  are  better,  and 
are  now  marching  with  us.  This  is  not  the  case  with 
the  poor  pack  horses.  They  have  been  so  run  down 
that  many  of  them  are  worthless,  and  so  we  had  to 
shoot  a  score  or  more,  just  as  we  did  with  a  lot  of 
them  after  the  battle  at  Newtown. 

"  All    the   artillery,    five    pieces,    has    got    safely 


254    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

through.  This  I  know,  for  I  counted  them,  but  some 
of  the  men  say  that  they  lost  a  cannon  at  Honeoye. 
Others  declare  that  it  was  at  another  stream,  or  in 
a  miry  swamp,  they  cannot  tell  for  certain  which. 
I  expect  that  some  of  the  men  who  have  been  down 
on  the  idea  of  taking  artillery  at  all,  will  keep  up 
this  notion  of  a  '  lost '  cannon.  It  seems  to  be  the 
thing  to  believe,  and,  if  we  listen  to  all  the  stories, 
there  have  been  cannon  lost  all  the  way  from  Conesus 
to  Kanedasaga.  On  one  day,  the  breaking  down  of 
a  cannon  carriage  cost  a  delay  of  two  hours  to  the 
whole  army,  during  which  time  all  sorts  of  stories 
started. 

"  A  party  of  Oneida  Indians  came  to  the  general 
to  plead  that  the  Cayuga  Indians  on  the  east  side  of 
the  lake  should  be  spared,  for  they  are  relatives  by 
marriage  of  the  Oneidas,  and  if  all  their  fields  should 
be  wasted,  the  Oneidas  would  have  to  support  the 
warriors'  families.  General  Sullivan,  however,  deter 
mined  to  carry  out  the  programme  of  destruction  laid 
down  by  Congress,  because  these  men  were  hostile 
and  liars.  He  has  sent  Colonel  Butler  with  five 
hundred  men  to  destroy  their  settlement.  Colonel 
Gansevoort,  with  a  hundred  men,  will  march  into  the 
Mohawk  Valley  and  return  to  Schenectady  by  way 
of  Fort  Stanwix,  or,  as  we  now  call  it,  Fort  Schuyler." 


CHAPTER   XXII 

MARY  VROOMAN  AND  THE  GLEN  FLOWER 

LEAVING  the  main  army,  Colonel  Henry  Dear 
born,  with  two  hundred  New  Hampshire  men, 
started  to  march  from  north  to  south  down  the  west 
side  of  Cayuga  Lake,  and  then  to  cross  over  the  in 
tervening  country  and  to  go  from  south  to  north  up 
the  east  side  of  Seneca  Lake,  thence  joining  the  army 
at  Fort  Reed.  Like  the  former  marches,  this  was  one 
in  which  the  torch  and  the  sword  joined  their  forces 
of  destruction.  One  of  the  three  Indian  towns  burned 
on  the  first  day  was  Ganoga,  famous  as  the  birthplace 
of  Red  Jacket,  who  had  so  used  his  eloquence  in  try 
ing  to  persuade  his  fellow  Senecas  to  neutrality,  that 
the  Tory  Butler  looked  upon  him  as  only  a  half 
hearted  warrior,  and  afterward  taxed  him  with  treach 
ery.  The  next  day,  burning  another  town,  Dearborn 
found  three  squaws  and  a  young  crippled  Indian,  and 
took  them  along  as  prisoners,  in  the  hope  of  learning 
something  from  them. 

The  pathless  country  back  of  the  bluffs  of  Lake 
Cayuga  was  "  so  horrid  rough  and  brushy  "  that  it 
was  almost  impossible  to  advance  but  with  much  dif- 

255 


256         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

ficulty  and  fatigue.  Coming  in  sight  of  that  rocky 
and  precipitous  cape  so  well  known  as  Taughannock 
Point,  which  projects  itself  into  the  water,  he  imag 
ined  he  had  reached  the  end  of  Cayuga  Lake.  In 
this  he  was  mistaken.  The  shale  rock,  which  aeons 
ago  was  grooved  or  scooped  out  by  glaciers,  is  here 
cut  up  into  numerous  picturesque  gorges.  It  was  im 
possible  to  move  along  the  bluffs  overlooking  the  lake, 
nor  was  there  any  Indian  path  there.  But  about  two 
miles  back,  along  the  heads  of  the  ravine,  passing 
through  what  is  now  Hayt's  Corners  and  Ovid  Centre, 
lay  the  trail.  So,  moving  back  to  this  better  ground, 
Dearborn  arrived  at  the  end  of  the  lake  near  where 
to-day  lies  the  city  of  Ithaca,  and  where,"  far  above 
Cayuga's  waters,"  rise  the  hills  on  which  Cornell 
University  rears  her  proud  edifices,  and  where,  above 
all,  soars  the  gold-tipped  library  tower,  with  its  sweet 
chimes,  gleaming  against  the  blue  sky.  — 

May  we  not  stop  here,  to  recall  Lowell's  lines  cut 
in  the  granite  arch  beneath  ?  — 

"  I  call  as  fly  the  irrevocable  hours, 

Futile  as  air  or  strong  as  fate,  to  make 
Your  lives  of  sand  or  granite,  awful  powers  ; 
Even  as  men  choose,  they  either  give  or  take." 

***** 

By  this  time,  feeling  that  he  must  be  near  the 
Cayuga  capital,  Dearborn  sent  out  small  parties  to 
tread  every  trail,  and  scour  all  nooks.  Moving  up 
what  is  now  "  the  Inlet,"  they  found  ten  or  twelve  scat- 


MARY  VROOMAN  AND  THE  GLEN  FLOWER    2  57 

tering  houses  and  large  corn-fields  and  at  last  came 
upon  the  great  town  of  Coreorganel.  The  Catawbas, 
whose  fathers  had  lived  between  the  Potomac  and  the 
Roanoke  rivers,  had,  after  a  long  history  of  war,  finally 
at  Sir  William  Johnson's  house,  in  1753,  smoked  the 
calumet  of  peace  with  the  Iroquois.  Hither  on  the 
stream,  "the  Inlet,"  flowing  into  Cayuga  Lake,  they 
had  come  to  light  their  council  and  home  fires. 

They  had  not  yet  completed  three  decades  of  life 
on  this  spot,  which  Dearborn's  detachment  of  Sulli 
van's  army  made  the  grave  of  a  nation. 

The  work  of  devastating  Coreorganel,  two  miles 
from  the  modern  Ithaca,  was  accomplished  on  Sep 
tember  24,  17/9.  Small  parties  of  the  New  Hamp 
shire  Continentals  had  scoured  the  region  round, 
burning  the  outlying  and  isolated  bark  lodges  and  tim 
ber  houses.  They  penetrated  even  into  the  gorge, 
through  which  flows  the  stream  which  to-day  fur 
nishes  the  water  supply  of  the  Forest  City,  Ithaca, 
and  through  the  western  end  of  which  bursts  the 
glorious  Buttermilk  Falls,  the  actual  sight  being  more 
sublime  than  its  homely  name.  It  was  one  of  the 
thirty  or  more  of  gorges  famous,  and  of  waterfalls 
three  hundred  and  known,  within  a  radius  of  fifteen 
miles  of  Ithaca,  one  of  the  latter  excelling  Niagara  in 
height. 

From  9  A.M.  until  the  long  shadows  of  sunset  lay 
over  the  landscape,  the  firing,  chopping,  girdling,  and 
uprooting  went  on,  until  smoke  and  ashes  covered  the 


258         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

once  lively  place  of  habitation,  like  the  floor  of  a  fur 
nace.  Then  the  weary  Continentals  slept,  to  march 
at  sunrise.  It  was  the  pall  of  smoke  hanging  over 
the  Inlet  valley,  that  next  day  made  an  air  mark,  to 
guide  Colonel  Butler  on  his  way  thither. 

While  all  the  journals  kept  by  officers  and  pri 
vates,  and  many  of  their  letters,  tell  of  Dearborn's 
and  Butler's  operations  in  the  devastation  of  the  lake 
country,  few  or  none,  thus  far  recovered,  give  infor 
mation  concerning  Colonel  Pierre  van  Cortlandt's 
movements  around  Cayuga  Lake. 

For  several  days  his  regiment  camped  on  ground 
now  in  the  very  heart  of  the  city  of  Ithaca.  Here 
had  dwelt  a  remnant  of  the  once  proud  Neodakheats, 
for  even  yet  there  come  to  light,  from  time  to  time, 
many  proofs  of  their  sepulchres  continued  from  time 
unrecorded.  Three  ravines  or  gorges  seam  the  hills 
facing  the  west,  and,  flowing  from  the  plateau  on 
which  now  stands  Cornell  University,  were  two 
streams  of  water,  which  readers  of  geological  time 
say  were  made  during  or  after  the  ice  age.  The 
third  stream,  flowing  between  East  and  South  hills,  is 
believed  to  be  still  older,  or  preglacial. 

On  Prospect  Hill,  a  lower  plateau  of  South  Hill, 
overlooking  the  Inlet  valley,  the  flats  and  the  lakes, 
and  commanding  a  view  of  the  Western  hills  was 
an  Indian  signal  station.  It  was  on  this  point  of 
vantage  that  one  detachment  of  Van  Cortlandt's 
regiment  encamped  during  several  days  in  late  Sep- 


MARY  VROOMAN  AND  THE  GLEN  FLOWER    259 

tember,  while  the  other  found  space,  water,  and  con 
veniences  by  the  oldest  o.f  the  future  Ithaca's  four 
streams  that  fed  the  ever  beautiful  lake. 

The  landscape  was  then  clothed  in  the  loveliest  of 
autumn's  myriad  hues,  and  the  men  were  happy  in 
anticipation  of  home ;  but  Herman  Clute,  despite 
his  glory  won  at  Conesus  Lake,  felt  wretched 
and  disappointed,  for  Mary  Vrooman  was  as  yet 
unheard  from.  Must  he  go  back,  not  knowing 
whether  she  still  pined  as  a  captive,  or  was  dead, 
or  —  the  thought  vexed  him  —  had  she  been  found 
or  rescued  by  others  ? 

Then  he  bethought  himself  of  what  Vrooman  had 
told  him  of  the  glen  flower  —  the  wild  primrose, 
hermit  of  the  ravine,  whom  botanists  of  to-day  salute 
as  a  very  Methuselah  among  plants  as  to  age  and  a 
very  Melchizedek  in  royal  rarity.  He  drew  out  of 
his  leather  pocket-book,  kept  within  his  bosom,  the 
drawing  and  colored  picture  of  its  root,  leaf,  stalk, 
and  flower,  with  a  scrap  of  descriptive  environment 
of  rock  and  moss,  and  sallied  forth  hopefully. 

The  little  Primula  Mistassinica  —  as  later  natural 
ists  have  called  it,  from  a  lake  in  Labrador  —  is  a 
survivor  of  the  ice  age.  It  has,  as  yet,  been  found 
only  in  a  few  of  the  deep,  shady  glens  npar  the  lakes  in 
central  New  York.  Here,  gloom  and  shadows,  which 
ally  themselves  to  the  colder  world  of  the  ice  age,  love 
to  linger.  Its  time  of  bloom  is  in  mid-May,  when 
its  clouds  of  pink  attract  the  skilled  observer  who 


26O          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

peers  into  the  mingled  gloom  and  glory  of  the  lake 
region's  dark  ravines.  He  who  first,  as  pioneer  of 
science,  discovered  the  primula  growing  here,  felt 
himself  a  Columbus ;  but  the  Indian  maidens  knew 
it  long  ago. 

From  the  camp  on  that  stream,  in  science  labelled 
"  preglacial,"  but  in  common  local  parlance  named 
the  Six  Mile  Creek,  Herman  Clute  wandered  north 
ward  over  the  flats  at  the  base  of  the  plateau  which 
Cornell's  edifices  now  crown.  He  crossed  Cascadilla 
Creek,  and,  going  a  few  hundred  yards  farther,  stood 
within  sight  of  the  superb  scenery  of  Fall  Creek. 
He  rambled  up  the  gorge,  delighted  with  the  beauty 
of  the  tumbling,  foaming  water.  Though  not  then 
the  "  local  Niagara,"  that  after  heavy  rains  or  in  time 
of  melting  snow  it  becomes,  it  was,  in  volume  and 
beauty,  more  than  enough  to  fascinate  the  gazer. 
Yet  despite  the  thrall  of  the  vision  of  the  forest's 
colors  and  of  autumn's  hardy  and  richly  tinted  wild 
flowers,  of  dancing  spray,  and  gay  fern,  and  water 
plant  smiling  in  the  foam,  Clute  was  a  true  soldier, 
ever  alert  for  a  possible  lurking  foe. 

Suddenly,  peering  into  a  dark  cleft  in  the  face  of 
the  southern  precipice,  he  uttered  a  cry  of  joy,  for 
there  was  the'  leaf  long  looked  for.  Pulling  up  the 
tiny  plant  by  the  roots,  and  comparing  sketch  and 
picture  with  the  reality,  he  felt  sure  he  had  found 
the  place. 

Imagination   was   busy,  for,  on  further  sight,  he 


MARY  VROOMAN  AND  THE  GLEN  FLOWER    26 1 

found  the  whole  cliff  so  rich  in  patches  of  the  plant 
that  to  think  of  mid-May,  or  early  June,  and  its 
blooms,  was  to  see  in  faith  a  firmament  of  pink. 
At  once  he  picked  a  dozen  plants,  some  even  with 
the  roots,  to  take  home  for  souvenirs,  and  to  send 
by  Vrooman  to  Margaret  Eyre  in  Philadelphia. 

But  was  she  there  ? 

"  She  must  be  near,  if  alive  at  all,  for  this  is  the 
place,"  said  the  young  man  to  himself. 

Thereupon,  with  a  shout  that  woke  the  echoes 
of  the  rocks,  gray  with  the  weathering  of  aeons, 
he  shouted :  "  M-a-r-y  V-r-o-o-m-a-n !  A-r-e  y-o-u 
h-e-r-e  ? " 

The  echoes  died.  Not  a  sound  was  heard,  besides 
the  purling  and  tinkling  of  the  stream,  and  the 
splash  and  drip  of  waters,  save  only  as  the  shrill 
insect  music  varied  the  void  of  human  interests. 

Again  the  young  Stentor  exercised  his  lungs. 
Five  times,  at  intervals,  did  his  shoutings  weary  the 
forest  with  their  yearning  inquest.  The  dead  gray 
walls  of  the  north  precipice,  all  the  barer  in  the  sun 
light,  seemed  contemptuous  in  their  silence.  They 
even  mocked  at  him,  he  thought.  The  south  wall 
seemed  to  frown  at  hope.  But  all  the  primula  leaves 
seemed  to  wave  in  the  morning  breeze  then  blowing 
out  of  the  ravine,  and  to  whisper  cheer.  They  nod 
ded  as  if  to  say,  "  Keep  on." 

"Well,  seven  is  the  holy  number,  as  the  domine 
says;  I'll  try  again." 


262          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

"  M-a-r-y    V-r-o-o-m-a-n  —  a-r-e    y-o-u    h-e-r-e-e-e  ?  " 

"I  am.  Wait!"  sounded  from  the  opposite  cliff. 
Yet  Herman  Clute  saw  nothing.  Were  his  ears 
deceived  ? 

No !  soon  the  bushes  on  the  other  side  of  Trip 
hammer  Ravine  parted,  and  a  brown  face,  yet  not 
an  Indian  girl's,  appeared.  In  a  moment  the  full 
figure  in  squaw's  dress  stood  out  on  the  edge  of  the 
rocks. 

"  Herman !  I  know  your  voice.  Wait !  I  know 
the  way,  I'll  come  to  you." 

Disappearing  for  a  moment,  she  ran  like  a  deer 
back  around  and  down  the  northern  hill  slope  to 
the  low  land  where  she  could  ford  the  creek  at 
the  point  where  now  the  road  passing  along  Percy 
Field  —  seat  of  Cornell's  athletic  triumphs  —  crosses 
the  stream. 

Fleet  as  the  white  maid  of  the  woods  was,  the 
lover  was  as  swift.  With  feet  quickly  bared,  he  was 
across  in  a  trice,  meeting  her,  his  beloved,  on  the 
opposite  shore.  After  one  glad  embrace,  he  bore 
her  in  his  arms  to  the  southern  side. 

An  hour  of  lovers'  talk,  joy  under  the  "Primrose 
Cliffs,"  and  then,  triumph  and  welcome  at  the  camp ! 
That  was  the  morning  programme !  No  one  but  sol 
diers  long  in  exile  from  woman  friends  can  tell  how 
radiantly  lovely  a  maiden  in  full  youth  and  beauty  — 
albeit  in  squaw's  dress  —  seems  in  the  eyes  of  home 
sick  men. 


'  MARY  VROOMAN  AND  THE  GLEN  FLOWER    263 

The  story  told  to  lover  and  rescuer  by  the  side  of 
the  cliff  in  Triphammer  Ravine,  beneath  the  primula's 
home  and  amid  the  music  of  the  waterfall,  was  re 
peated  in  outline  to  Colonel  van  Cortlandt  and  some 
of  his  officers,  \n  the  hasty  flight  of  the  Kendaia  Ind 
ians,  no  one  had  cared  for  her.  She  hid  herself  in 
the  corn-fields,  but,  not  knowing  which  way  the  army 
would  come,  had  fled  to  her  place  of  refuge,  long  ago 
foreseen  and  chosen.  There,  bravely  and  alone,  she 
had  waited,  amid  the  alternate  agonies  of  despair  and 
the  joys  of  hope. 

The  next  day,  the  march  began  to  Fort  Reed,  where 
now  stands  the  fair  city  of  Elmira. 


CHAPTER   XXIII 

LEGENDS    OF    CAYUGA    LAKE 

THE  letters  of  the  young  Continental,  Herman 
Clute,  to  his  mother  at  Schenectady,  were  full  of 
a  fresh  glow  and  enthusiasm  and  a  deep,  new  joy,  from 
the  time  that  he  had  found  Mary  Vrooman  in  the 
gorge  at  Ithaca.  His  sensitiveness  to  nature's  love 
liness  seemed  to  have  been  kindled  afresh,  and  he 
wrote  freely  about  the  lovely  legends  that  lend  such 
charm  to  the  fairest  of  the  lakes,  Cayuga.  He  thus 
describes  the  vision  of  a  glorious  dawn,  from  near 
that  part  of  the  water  which  the  Iroquois  named 
"  Constant  Dawn  "  and  the  white  man,  "  Aurora." 

"  I  witnessed,  this  morning,  what  I  must  call  '  the 
battle  of  the  elements.'  Standing  on  the  edge  of 
the  lake,  I  could  see  the  vapors  rising  cloud-like  from 
the  face  of  the  water  and  then  forming  again  in  great 
streaks  and  banks.  At  first  they  lay  still  above  the 
surface  or  moved  very  slowly,  but  when  the  sun  rose 
they  seemed  to  be  all  stirred  and  excited,  moving  up 
and  down  hither  and  yon,  until  they  seemed  at  times 
like  armies  charging  in  battle.  By  and  by  I  found 
the  blue  sky  hidden  from  my  sight,  but  here  and  there 

264 


LEGENDS  OF  CAYUGA  LAKE  265 

the  sun's  rays  tore  through  the  white  mass.  Grad 
ually,  as  the  heat  increased,  the  once  solid  banks  of 
clouds  were  torn  and  riven,  and  soon,  breaking  up 
into  shreds  and  patches,  they  went  off  and  became 
invisible. 

"  Then  the  whole  blue  face  of  the  lake  was  revealed ; 
but  still  a  new  surprise  awaited  me.  Instead  of  one 
color,  blue  or  green,  there  seemed  to  be  a  dozen  of 
them.  All  I  had  ever  read  about  the  stones  on  the 
breastplate  of  the  high  priest,  or  the  walls  of  the  New 
Jerusalem,  came  up  to  my  mind,  for  here,  right  on  the 
lake's  surface,  seemed  to  be  tints  of  amethyst,  emerald, 
sapphire,  ruby,  indeed  almost  every  color  one  can 
think  of,  from  violet  to  orange.  I  had  never  seen 
anything  like  it,  and  thought  that  it  must  come  en 
tirely  from  the  varying  depths  and  shallows  of  the 
water ;  but,  besides  this  staining  of  the  water,  there 
were  glorious  reflections  from  the  sky.  I  am  so 
charmed  with  this  country  that  I  think  that  by  and 
by,  when  the  war  is  over  and  we  get  our  freedom,  I 
shall  come  out  here  to  live.  I  shall  choose  this  spot 
for  my  home  overlooking  Cayuga  Lake,  where  I  can 
watch  the  war  of  the  elements  and  enjoy  these  colors. 
No  wonder  that  the  Indians  call  this  place  by  a  name 
which  means  'Constant  Dawn.' 

"  I  must  tell  you  also  of  the  wonderful  vision  I  had 
of  our  flag  in  the  sky.  It  was  the  grandest  picture 
I  have  ever  looked  upon.  I  was  on  sentinel  duty, 
and  my  post  was  on  the  high  ground  near  the 


266         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

banks  of  the  lake,  whence  I  could  see  up  and  down 
the  water  and  over  toward  the  east.  Before  sunrise 
I  noticed  clouds  lay  on  the  sky  which  at  daybreak 
divided  into  gray  bands  or  wide  streaks.  Just  as  the 
lower  cloud  bars  began  to  redden  with  the  rays  of  the 
rising  sun,  the  upper  ones  began  to  shorten,  and 
within  five  minutes  the  whole  eastern  heavens  showed 
on  their  face  the  figure  of  an  American  flag,  for  there 
were  thirteen  broad  stripes,  the  red  ones  as  red  as 
those  on  our  standard,  with  a  strip  of  sky  in  between. 
I  counted  them.  There  were  seven  cloud  bars  or 
stripes,  all  flaming  in  the  morning  sun,  and  in  the 
upper  left-hand  part,  there  was  the  great  blue  space 
of  sky.  Oh !  it  thrilled  my  soul  to  see  it,  and  yet 
there  were  no  stars  there.  How  glorious  to  think  of 
our  flag  with  the  stars  of  night,  as  well  as  the  colors 
of  the  day  sky. 

"  I  never  saw  such  a  country  as  this  for  cascades.  I 
thought  the  rapids  at  Little  Falls  were  wonderful 
and  the  big  falls  at  Cohoes  amazing,  but  this  region 
astonishes  me.  The  soil  around  here  lies  on  shale 
rock,  which  is  rather  soft,  and  the  streams  of  water 
running  down  through  it  wear  out  great  ravines 
and  gorges.  Some  of  these  must  have  been  made 
ages  upon  ages  ago.  Up  at  the  head  of  the  lake 
there  are  at  least  three  of  these,  and  the  sight  of  the 
waterfall  right  after  the  rain  is  very  fine,  and  reminds 
me  of  what  I  have  heard  of  Niagara.  But  the  most 
wonderful  place  is  a  great  hollow  called  by  the  Ind- 


LEGENDS  OF  CAYUGA  LAKE          26/ 

ians,  'Tatighannock.'  Here  the  rocky  heights,  some 
distance  back  from  the  lake,  have  been  so  hollowed 
out  that  I  believe  one  could  put  the  Colosseum  of  Rome 
inside  of  it.  Standing  at  the  bottom,  one  sees  open 
ing  into  the  eastern  wall,  far  above  him,  the  smaller 
gorge  that  has  been  worn  by  Taughannock  Creek. 
The  water  flows  over  the  rocks  first  as  though  it  came 
from  a  great  spout.  Then,  as  it  foams  toward  the 
bottom,  it  curves  and  curls  into  a  lacelike  mass  of 
white  water.  Our  chain-bearers,  who  have  a  good 
eye  for  distance,  say  that  it  must  be  many  feet  higher 
than  Niagara  Falls. 

"  Domine  Kirkland  says  that  Taughannock  is  not 
an  Iroquois  word,  but  is  a  Delaware  Indian  chief's 
name.  On  our  first  march  up  on  the  other  side  of 
Cayuga  Lake,  early  in  September,  when  talking  with 
Hanyari,  the  Oneida  chief,  we  learned  the  story  which 
he  interpreted  for  us  one  night  at  the  camp-fire,  which 
is  this." 

The  story-teller  here  prefers  to  describe  briefly  the 
place  referred  to,  and  to  reproduce  here  the  talk 
between  Hanyari  and  Vrooman,  when,  years  before, 
they  had  travelled  hither  with  Domine  Kirkland. 
Then  they  had  chatted  about  this  wonder  of  nature, 
which  the  Indian  accounts  for  by  the  poetry  of  his 
mythology,  even  as  the  white  man  explains  by 
science. 

It  was  while  traversing  the  western  side  of  Cayuga 
Lake,  they  forded  a  stream  leading  out  of  a  leafy 


268    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

ravine  into  a  deep  gorge,  or  opening  at  the  top  of  a 
great  cliff  on  the  highlands  back  from  the  shore. 
The  waters,  after  ages  of  activity,  had  cut  out  the 
rocks  and  worn  them  smooth.  It  is  out  of  this  upper 
gorge  that  the  material  commonly  called  flagstone  is 
to-day  supplied  from  the  quarry,  the  neighboring 
towns  and  cities  receiving  the  broad,  flat  slabs  for 
paving. 

Still  further  beyond  this  smaller  gorge,  and  toward 
the  lake,  was  an  enormous  amphitheatre,  hollowed  out 
by  the  action  of  water  and  the  movement  of  pebbles 
against  the  bed-rock.  The  churning  of  the  stream 
in  times  of  flood  had  done  a  work  which  might  have 
occupied  giants  for  an  aeon.  Many  hundreds  of 
feet  long  and  over  six  hundred  feet  wide,  forest 
trees  were  growing  in  the  floor  of  this  great  hollow, 
through  which  the  creek  wound  its  way  in  a  silver 
thread  to  the  lake,  while  the  trees,  when  seen  from 
the  dizzy  height  and  ravine,  seemed  of  a  size  like  toys. 
All  around  at  the  base  of  the  lofty  and  rocky  walls, 
lay  the  debris  accumulated  through  the  centuries. 

Falling  from  the  brink  of  the  perpendicular  cliff, 
through  the  outlet  of  the  upper  and  smaller  gorge, 
like  a  stream  of  limpid  water  from  the  lip  of  a  mar 
ble  laver,  the  stream,  broadening  as  it  leaped,  turned 
into  a  white  mass  of  lacelike  foam.  Tremulous, 
wavy,  and  scalloped,  its  mass  seemed  as  if  it  were 
being  woven  in  a  living  loom.  From  a  height  higher 
than  Niagara's  level,  and  into  an  abyss  deeper  than 


LEGENDS    OF    CAYUGA    LAKE  269 

line  had  yet  measured,  at  morning  arched  with  rain 
bows,  and  at  night  tiaraed  with  a  lunar  arch,  it  had 
during  untold  time  fascinated  the  Iroquois.  Though 
at  the  top  a  solid  liquid  mass,  polished  in  its  velocity, 
it  scarce  reached  the  bottom  in  aught  but  clouds  of 
watery  dust.  All  around  were  fern  and  flower,  grass 
and  greenery,  nodding,  gleaming,  laughing,  under  the 
constant  baptism  of  spray. 

"  Wonderful !  wonderful !  "  exclaimed  Claes  Vroo- 
man,  as  he  gazed  upon  the  scene.  "  How  in  the 
world  could  ever  such  a  space  have  been  hollowed 
out  of  the  rocky  earth  ?  Come,  comrade,  can  you 
explain  ?  "  said  he  to  his  Oneida  guide. 

"  I  can  only  tell  you  what  I  have  heard,"  said  the 
Oneida,  as  his  face  took  on  a  far-away  look.  "  My 
fathers  have  told  me  of  this  place,  which  we  Oneidas 
know  well,  though  it  is  far  from  our  country."  Fill 
ing  his  stone  pipe  and  striking  flint  and  steel,  he 
lighted  his  forest-grown  tobacco,  and,  after  a  few 
puffs,  began :  — 

"  Ages  ago,  when  the  stone-clothed  giants  lived  on 
the  earth,  the  spirit  of  the  waters  and  the  spirit  of  the 
rocks  fell  into  a  disagreement.  They  had  friends 
among  the  other  spirits  of  the  sky  and  air :  the  light 
ning,  the  thunder,  the  wind,  and  the  others  that  rule 
the  forest,  the  garden,  the  corn-field,  and  the  caves. 
These  two  spirits,  of  water  and  of  the  rocks,  were 
especially  fond  of  showing  their  prowess,  and  wres 
tled  often  with  each  other.  The  spirit  of  the  water 


2/O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

was  considered  the  gentler,  and  the  spirit  of  the  rock 
the  rougher  one,  though  he  was  often  very  lazy. 
One  day  the  spirit  of  the  rock  twitted  the  spirit  of 
the  water  with  being  so  active  and  busy,  always  tak 
ing  on  so  many  forms  and  toiling  so  hard. 

"  The  rock  spirit  grew  boastful,  declaring  that  he 
could  do  more  in  force  and  destruction  in  one  minute 
by  rolling  a  great  mass  down  the  mountain,  levelling 
the  trees  and  scraping  the  earth  clean ;  or,  he  could 
make  more  splash  and  noise  by  having  a  cliff  riven 
so  as  to  fall  into  the  lake,  or  could  accomplish  more 
by  a  landslide,  in  a  single  night,  than  the  spirit  of  the 
waters,  with  all  its  rain  and  dew,  cloud  and  moisture, 
or  even  a  flood,  could  accomplish  in  many  hours. 
While  the  spirit  of  the  water  had  to  depend  on  the 
wind  spirit  to  cause  the  lake's  surface  to  rise  and 
mount  into  waves  and  foam,  or  to  make  much  noise 
or  power  in  the  air,  the  rock  spirit,  apparently  with 
out  any  effort,  could  tumble  over  the  gorge,  drop 
from  the  cliff,  make  a  landslide,  or  even  crack  and 
open  in  an  earthquake.  Thus  the  rock  spirit  jeered, 
even  boasting  that  he  was  a  brave,  while  the  water 
spirit  was  only  a  squaw  in  his  eyes. 

"  Now,  the  water  spirit  was  usually  very  gentle, 
and  did  not  seek  to  irritate  any  one.  So  he  kept 
quiet  for  a  long  time,  but  finally,  when  thus  jeered  at 
by  the  spirit  of  the  rocks,  said  :  — 

" '  Well,  I  know  a  place  right  near  my  favorite  bed 
of  Lake  Cayuga,  where  I  have  a  little  stream  serv- 


I 

LEGENDS  OF  CAYUGA  LAKE  2? I 

ing  me.  It  runs  quietly  down  the  slope,  from  the 
upper  highlands  into  the  lake.  Now,  I  will  back  that 
little  stream  and  it  will  be  my  agent,  and  I  dare  you 
to  come  in  the  form  of  a  big  rock,  as  high  as  a  pine 
tree  and  wide  as  twenty  horses,  set  side  by  side,  and 
we'll  have  a  wrestling  bout  before  all  the  stone- 
clothed  spirits,  and  before  the  spirits  of  the  wind,  the 
lightning,  the  thunder,  the  sun,  and  the  moon,  of  the 
corn-field  and  the  cavern.  There  we'll  wrestle,  till  one 
of  us  is  beaten  and  has  to  retire.' 

"'Agreed,'  said  the  spirit  of  the  rocks;  Til  be 
there.' 

"  So,  on  a  certain  day,  all  the  spirits  gathered  round 
in  a  circle  to  watch  the  contest.  At  that  time  there 
was,  instead  of  the  great  hollow  hundreds  of  feet 
wide  and  deep,  nothing  but  a  forest-clad  slope, 
through  which  the  stream  of  water  went  purling 
along  to  the  lake. 

"  The  contestants  began,  and  the  water  spirit  and 
the  rock  spirit  locked  arms  and  began  to  wrestle. 
They  were  not  to  give  up  until  one  or  both  was 
spent  as  to  his  strength.  Even  when  they  were  down, 
they  were  to  roll  over  and  over,  and  fight  it  out  in 
one  bout. 

"  So  away  they  began,  rock  and  water,  rubbing 
and  grinding ;  and  oh,  how  the  earth  and  brushwood 
did  fly  !  But,  while  the  rock  spirit  moved  round 
and  fussed  and  fumed,  the  water  spirit  held  on 
tightly  and  persevered,  always  getting  fresh  strength 


272          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

from  his  supply  in  the  brook.  All  the  time,  the  two 
combatants  were  getting  deeper  and  deeper  down  into 
the  earth.  In  their  terrible  struggles,  they  dug  out 
a  great,  big  hollow,  like  two  rabbits  fighting  in  the 
snow,  until,  by  and  by,  the  pit  in  which  they  fought 
was  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide  and  a  half  a  mile  long. 
When  the  wrestling  and  rolling  were  over,  the  rock 
was  all  broken  to  pieces,  and  the  spirit  of  the  rocks 
had  fled  out  of  it ;  but  the  spirit  of  the  waters  seemed 
to  be  no  more  tired  than  when  he  began.  First  giv 
ing  thanks  to  the  stream  that  had  helped  him  as  such 
a  faithful  ally,  and  bidding  him  flow  forever  over  the 
mighty  rock  wall,  the  spirit  of  the  waters  rose  into  a 
cloud  and  passed  over  the  lake,  to  reflect  its  shadow 
in  thanksgiving  there  also.  And  so  the  creek  has 
flowed  on  till  this  day." 

"  A  wonderful  story,"  said  Vrooman  ;  "  but  how  did 
it  get  its  name? "  In  what  dialect  of  the  confederacy 
does  the  name  Taughannock  belong  ?" 

"Well,  it  is  neither  Cayugan  nor  Tuscaroran.  It 
is  the  name  of  a  chief  of  the  Lenni  Lenapes,  or,  as 
you  white  men  say,  the  Delawares." 

"  How,  under  heaven,  did  such  a  name  get  stuck 
on  a  piece  of  the  earth  so  far  up  here  in  New  York  ? 
Some  chief  on  the  war-path,  I  suppose  ?  " 

"  Yes,  you  are  right.  I  heard  the  story  from  my 
uncle.  He  told  me  that  long  time  ago,  when  the 
famous  Taughannock  family  of  chieftains  lived  down 
in  the  Delaware  River  valley,  before  the  Tammanys 


LEGENDS  OF  CAYUGA  LAKE  2/3 

came  into  power,  they  got  into  a  dispute  with  the 
white  men  about  the  sale  of  land  at  the  forks  of  the 
Delaware.  The  white  people  under  the  Feather 
(governor  of  Pennsylvania),  knowing  that  the  Dela- 
wares  had  been  conquered  by  the  Iroquois  and  made 
to  wear  the  petticoat,  craftily  appealed  to  the  Iro 
quois  to  settle  the  question.  Thereupon  delegates 
from  the  whole  confederacy,  of  whom  my  father  was 
one  from  our  tribe,  held  a  great  council  at  Onondaga. 
After  some  oratory,  they  agreed  to  decide  in  favor  of 
the  white  men  and  against  the  Delawares.  This  was 
over  thirty  years  ago.  They  sent  an  imposing  dele 
gation  to  Philadelphia,  at  the  head  of  which  was  the 
great  chief  Kanasatigo.  He  was  accompanied  by 
over  two  hundred  warriors.  At  the  council  held  in 
the  city  of  Penn,  they  addressed  the  governor, 
whom  they  always  called  '  Feather,'  telling  him  that 
the  Delawares  were  'no  good;  they  were  women, 
and  had  no  right  to  sell  their  land.'  They  even  went 
so  far  as  to  insult  the  Delaware  chieftains  in  the 
council  to  their  very  faces." 

"  Why,  yes,"  said  Vrooman ;  "  I  have  heard  that 
from  a  friend,  who,  when  a  boy,  was  present  at  the 
council.  I  remember  his  telling  how  exultantly  the 
Onondagas  sat  down  to  the  big  dinner  and  drank 
unlimited  rum,  while  the  poor  Delawares  went  off 
cowed  and  disheartened.  They  made  their  way  into 
western  Pennsylvania,  losing  most  of  their  old  tribal 
organization  and  yielding  to  such  adoption  into  other 

T 


2/4         ™E    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

tribes  as  was  offered.  Yet  I  remember  my  friend's 
telling  of  one  young  Delaware  chief,  named  Taugh- 
annock,  whose  eyes  danced  and  snapped  like  fire. 
Now,  the  name  of  that  chief  and  this  place  is  the 
same.  Is  there  any  connection  between  the  man 
and  the  gorge  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  the  Oneida ;  "this  chief,  whose  fathers 
in  a  long  line  had  been  chiefs,  was  stung  to  the 
quick.  He  vowed  revenge.  He  separated  from  his 
tribe  and  persuaded  about  two  hundred  young  war 
riors  to  side  with  him.  They  consecrated  themselves 
to  the  purpose  of  revenge,  by  what  you  white  men  call 
a  war  dance.  Instead  of  accompanying  his  discour 
aged  tribesmen  farther  west  into  Ohio,  Taughannock 
led  off  his  band  when  near  Wyoming,  and  turned 
northward  toward  Owego.  His  purpose  was  to  get 
into  the  New  York  lake  country  and  fall  upon  the 
village  of  Goioguen,  where  the  Seneca  Indians  and 
Cayugas  had  formed  a  great  town  of  between  five 
and  six  thousand  people.  Its  name  was  made  up  of 
the  names  of  two  chiefs,  the  one  whose  mother  was  a 
Cayuga  and  the  other  whose  father  was  a  Seneca. 
Reaching  Ganoga  and  trending  to  the  left,  they  went 
northward.  So  brave  and  determined  were  this  band 
of  Delawares  that  the  Seneca  scouts  and  runners, 
when  they  had  discovered  the  invaders,  would  not 
trust  to  themselves  alone  to  fight  them,  but  sent 
messengers  through  the  lake  country  and  even  to 
Onondaga,  the  central  council  fire,  for  aid. 


LEGENDS    OF    CAYUGA    LAKE  2/5 

"  The  chief,  Kanasatigo,  quickly  gathered  a  band, 
and  marched  southward,  crossing  the  lake  at  Seneca 
Falls,  the  Indian  village  where  lived  Red  Jacket, 
then  a  boy.  Holding  a  hurried  council  at  Ganoga, 
he  set  out  at  the  head  of  two  hundred  braves,  and 
was  soon  in  front  of  the  camp  of  Delawares,  who 
were  painting  themselves  for  the  fray  soon  to  come. 

"  The  Delaware  invaders  found  themselves  be 
tween  a  band  of  Neodakheats  (Ithacans),  who  were 
about  to  cross  the  stream  on  the  south,  while  the 
Kanasatigo  forces  were  hovering  on  their  flanks  on 
the  north.  When  the  Delawares  realized  their  situ 
ation  and  their  likelihood  of  being  surrounded  and 
exterminated,  they  resolved  to  retreat  toward  the 
lake.  Seeing  this  movement,  the  two  bands  of  ene 
mies  signalled  to  each  other,  and,  while  the  triple 
allies,  Senecas,  Cayugas,  and  Neodakheats,  or  Itha 
cans,  moved  down  the  left  side  of  the  stream,  Kana 
satigo  moved  up  from  the  lake  on  the  left  bank, 
keeping  out  a  line  of  flankers  to  prevent  the  possible 
escape  of  the  Delawares.  The  stream  was  flooded 
with  recent  rains,  and  crossing  was  difficult  under 
any  circumstances,  but,  in  the  face  of  arrows  and 
bullets,  how  could  the  Delawares  get  across  ? 

"This,  however,  they  essayed  to  do,  when  near 
the  smaller  gorge,  just  above  the  falls  of  the  creek. 
They  were  repulsed  and  driven  along  the  banks  and 
on  toward  the  great  amphitheatre,  with  its  terrific 
precipices,  yet  not  dreaming  that  so  large  a  force 


2/6    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

of  Onondagas  was  there  confronting  them  and  lying 
in  wait  in  the  forest  flanking  the  great  abyss.  Sud 
denly,  as  the  retreating  Delawares  neared  them,  these 
rose  up,  raising  their  yells.  Then  began  a  terrific 
battle  at  close  quarters,  for  the  Onondagas  in  front 
were  now  reinforced  by  the  triple  band  of  allies 
which  had  crossed  the  stream.  These,  with  the 
Onondagas,  quickly  completed  a  semicircle  of  living 
enemies,  while  northward  was  the  brink  of  the  awful 
abyss,  whence,  far  down  below,  in  a  sheer  line  of 
hundreds  of  feet  distance,  lay  a  multitude  of  jagged 
rocks. 

"  Nevertheless,  the  Delawares  resolved  to  show 
themselves,  in  courage  at  least,  the  equals  of  the 
Iroquois,  to  die  bravely  and  at  highest  cost  to  their 
foes.  They  would  leave  a  name  for  valor  that  should 
cleanse  away  the  stain  of  disgrace  which  had  so 
long  cursed  the -Delaware  nation.  The  young  chief 
Taughannock,  after  having  levelled  many  a  warrior 
to  the  ground,  dashed  at  Kanasatigo,  wounding  him 
with  his  scalping  knife.  He  might  have  ended  the 
life  of  the  Onondaga  chieftain  then  and  there,  but 
the  other  warriors  rushed  to  his  rescue,  and  struck 
down  Taughannock.  They  stabbed  him  with  fiercely 
repeated  blows  of  their  knives,  until  he  was  gashed 
in  every  part  of  his  body.  Then,  seizing  his  bloody 
corpse,  they  rushed  forward  and  halting  within  a 
foot  of  the  edge  of  the  awful  cliff,  hurled  his  body 
out  into  the  air  and  down  upon  the  rocks  below. 


LEGENDS    OF    CAYUGA    LAKE 

"  Only  ten  of  the  Delawares  escaped.  Those  who 
were  seized  alive  were  tortured,  all  singing  the  death- 
song  and  defying  their  enemies  to  the  last,  glorying 
\to  have  wiped  out  their  nation's  shame." 

"  Thus  has  Taughannock  a  memorial  in  this  wil 
derness,  and  his  fame  shall  be  as  lasting  as  the  eternal 
hills,"  added  the  domine,  who  had  listened  atten 
tively  to  the  narrative. 

Nor  can  we  turn  our  backs  upon  Cayuga's  waters 
without  recalling  the  legend  which  accounts  for  the 
presence  of  Frontenac  Island. 

Out  in  front  of  the  lake,  looking  from  Union 
Springs,  is  a  beautiful  island,  opposite  which,  on  the 
mainland,  long  ago,  the  Cayuga  chief,  Pine  Cone, 
dwelt.  He  had  fallen  in  love  with  the  daughter  of  a 
Seneca,  at  a  time  when  these  two  tribes  were  hostile 
to  each  other.  Failing  to  get  the  maiden  for  his 
bride  by  ordinary  etiquette,  for  the  old  squaws  disap 
proved,  he  decided  on  stratagem.  To  occupy  the 
attention  of  the  wary  Senecas,  he  sent  some  of  his 
followers,  all  painted  for  the  war-path,  in  a  canoe  to 
Ganoga.  The  Senecas,  thinking  that  these  warriors 
were  after  scalps,  gathered  together  to  give  them  bat 
tle.  This  was  just  what  Pine  Cone  wanted.  Quickly 
he  sped  across  the  lake  in  his  canoe,  and  seized  the 
maiden,  who  was  waiting  and  only  too  ready  to  go. 
He  put  her  in  his  canoe  and  paddled  with  all  his 
might  across  the  lake.  The  Senecas,  catching  sight 
of  this  single  canoe  and  its  double  burden,  suspected 


2/8    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

at  once  what  it  was.  Launching  their  boats,  they 
started  in  pursuit,  and,  since  six  or  eight  paddles 
were  at  work  in  the  foremost  canoe,  the  Senecas, 
fresh  and  strong,  began  to  gain  visibly  upon  the 
marauding  lover.  Pine  Cone,  becoming  a  little 
weary  from  his  double  journey,  feared  he  would  be 
caught.  So,  earnestly  praying  to  Ha-wen-ni-yu,  he 
kept  on,  straining  every  muscle.  This  Good  Spirit, 
hearing  his  servant,  thrust  down  his  mighty  arm,  and, 
scooping  up  the  earth  from  the  bottom  of  the  lake, 
formed  an  island,  which  enabled  Pine  Cone  to  escape 
to  the  mainland  and  turn  back  the  pursuers.  This 
was  the  origin  of  Frontenac  Island. 


CHAPTER   XXIV 

TENTING  ON  THE  OLD  CAMP  GROUND 

THE  main  army  had  camped  at  Kendaia  and 
reached  Catherine's  town  at  noon  the  next  day, 
where  they  found  the  old  squaw  and  left  her  a 
further  supply  of  food.  Alas  for  the  truth  of  the 
proverb,  coined  later,  in  Indian  parlance,  "  as  cruel 
as  Sullivan's  soldiers."  Yet  the  facts  show  that  it 
was  a"  few  irresponsible  brutes  in  human  form,  and 
not  soldiers  wearing  the  Continental  uniform,  that 
gave  the  name  of  infamy  to  the  whole  army.  For, 
near  the  corrugated  hide  of  leather  that  held  within 
it  a  human  soul,  —  the  old  squaw,  with  a  quart  of 
corn  still  left  her,  —  there  lay  in  the  ditch  near  her 
the  corpse  of  a  young  Indian  woman,  shot  in  wanton 
sport  by  some  camp  followers,  or  letter  bearers  from 
Philadelphia. 

Trintje  Vrooman  recognized  the  aged  woman  as 
one  who  had  long  acted  as  a  sort  of  doctress  among 
the  Seneca  villages,  and,  with  a  true  woman's  sym 
pathy,  spoke  words  of  cheer  to  her  as  a  human  sister  ; 
but  the  old  woman  said  she  expected  to  live  but  a 
few  days.  She  was  very  profuse,  and  apparently 

279 


28O    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

sincere,  in  her  gratitude  for  kindness  received  at 
General  Sullivan's  hands.  Under  Trintje's  kindly 
hands,  the  young  squaw's  body  was  washed,  rolled 
up  in  a  blanket,  and  buried  in  a  grave  dug  by  her 
husband  Claes.  Without  a  pulse  of  malice  or  desire 
for  revenge,  this  was  done ;  for  Trintje,  though  a 
slave  among  savages,  had  been  kept  in  personal 
honor  and  without  violence.  Suffering  many  indig 
nities  of  savage  life,  she  yet  remembered  this  shining 
fact  with  a  gratitude  that  lent  joy  to  the  gift  of  a 
grave  in  the  wilderness  to  the  Indian  woman  whom 
Christians  had  murdered. 

When  the  returning  victors  came  within  sight  of 
Fort  Reed,  there  was  a  mighty  noise  of  welcome 
from  the  three-pounder,  thirteen  rounds  being  fired, 
to  which  our  men  having  the  coehorn  in  advance 
answered  by  a  similar  salute.  Here  the  soldiers 
ceased  to  be  vegetarians,  and  enjoyed  full  rations, 
remaining  several  days  to  rest  and  recruit,  for  stores 
and  comforts  had  been  brought  up  from  Wyoming 
and  Fort  Sullivan. 

On  the  25th,  great  rejoicings  were  held  and  five 
oxen  were  barbecued.  There  was  no  fear  of  any 
superstition  about  the  number  thirteen,  for  thirteen 
fires  and  thirteen  candles  were  kept  burning  in  Gen 
eral  Hand's  brigade,  and  thirteen  toasts  were  drunk 
in  honor  of  the  thirteen  United  States  of  America. 
To  this  grand  affair,  we  shall  devote  a  chapter. 

Dearborn  had    expected   to    meet  Colonel    Butler 


TENTING  ON  THE  OLD  CAMP  GROUND      28l 

with  his  party  at  Coreorganel,  but  did  not.  The  next 
day,  some  of  Butler's  men,  coming  to  the  smoking 
ruins,  as  we  have  seen,  found  Domine  Kirkland's 
horse  browsing  on  the  prostrate  corn  leaves  and  ears. 

Dearborn,  marching  southwesterly  across  the  coun 
try, —  this  American  Interlaken,  —  reached  Cather 
ine's  town  to  find  the  main  army  gone  forward  to  Fort 
Reed.  So  he  pressed  forward  four  miles  farther, 
and  camped  in  a  place  which  a  few  weeks  before 
would  no  more  have  been  selected  than  if  it  were 
a  purgatory.  Now,  however,  instead  of  a  "vale  of 
woe"  or  "slough  of  despond,"  they  found  this  once 
horrible  place  a  sunny  thoroughfare,  and  their  going 
through  was  like  a  picnic  jaunt.  Indeed,  on  their 
return  march,  all  the  regiments  went  through  the 
great  Bear  Swamp  without  much  trouble,  for  four 
weeks  of  dry  weather  had  made  a  tremendous  differ 
ence,  and  the  men  joked  and  laughed  at  their  first 
night  of  horrors  here. 

Several  of  the  detachments  scouring  the  Indian 
country  were  not  yet  in,  but,  about  two  thousand 
Continentals  being  in  camp  at  Fort  Reed,  General 
Sullivan,  who  loved  the  pomp  of  war,  resolved  to 
rejoice.  Being  in  a  very  happy  mood,  he  ordered  all 
the  soldiers  to  discharge  their  muskets  and  to  parade 
at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  to  fire  a  feu  de  joie, 
or  continuous  rattle  of  rejoicing.  The  epidemic  of 
delight  quickly  spread  until  the  whole  camp  was  well 
inoculated.  In  all  the  regiments,  the  men  brushed 


282    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

themselves  up,  to  look  as  spruce  as  possible  on  dress 
parade.  One  blank  cartridge  was  given  to  each 
man. 

Toward  sunset,  when  all  were  in  line,  thirteen 
rounds  were  fired  from  the  cannon.  Then  from  all 
the  regiments  a  fire  was  ordered,  not  in  a  volley  but 
by  each  musket  in  succession,  and  this  was  done. 
Powder  was  burned  and  the  air  was  desolated. 

Yet  the  way  in  which  the  two  thousand  or  more 
reports  saluted  the  general's  ear  did  not  suit  him. 
So  he  ordered  a  blank  cartridge  to  be  given  again  to 
each  man.  Then  making  the  alignment,  along  the 
river  flats,  of  the  whole  force,  in  one  rank  only,  he 
ordered  that  all  should  be  ready  to  fire,  but  that  not  a 
man  should  pull  trigger  until  he  came  opposite  to  each 
musket,  as  he  rode  along.  When  all  was  prepared, 
he  put  his  horse  at  full  speed,  with  whip  and  spur, 
and  rode  from  the  right  to  the  left  end  of  the  line, 
each  man  firing  as  the  general  came  opposite  to  him. 
This  made  a  very  grand  effect,  and  Sullivan  cried 
out:  — 

"Well  done;  that  sounds  like  a  hallelujah." 

Then,  all  in  line,  standing  at  parade  rest,  the  Con 
tinentals  gave  cheers,  three  times  three,  one  round 
for  the  Congress,  three  for  the  United  States,  and 
three  for  the  king  of  Spain.  After  that  followed  the 
dinner  of  the  day,  given  by  General  Hand  in  com 
pliment  to  his  officers.  The  particularly  good  feel 
ing  toward  Congress  was  that  this  honorable  body 


TENTING  ON  THE  OLD  CAMP  GROUND     283 

had,  on  the  i8th  of  August,  passed  resolutions 
increasing  the  pay  of  the  officers. 

Saturday,  September  25th,  the  day  of  the  officers' 
banquet,  was  one  of  news,  arrivals,  and  surprises. 
A  messenger  from  Philadelphia  and  the  Congress 
arrived,  and  the  officers  of  Colonel  Hubley's  command 
were  made  happy  by  receiving  their  commissions. 
This  officer  noted  in  his  diary,  also,  that  about  eleven 
o'clock,  Colonel  Dearborn's  detachment  having 
emerged  from  Bear  Swamp  returned  to  Fort  Reed 
bringing  in  two  squaw  prisoners,  who  looked  like 
frightened  deer. 

Sunday  was  enjoyed  richly  by  the  veterans,  for  it 
was  one  of  complete  rest  and  the  day  was  glorious. 

On  Monday,  two  of  his  men  who,  on  the  counter 
march  had  lost  track  of  the  army  at  Canandaigua 
Lake,  came  in  after  seven  days'  wandering  in  the 
wilderness.  They  were  nearly  starved  at  first,  but 
finding  along  the  way  two  of  the  pack  horses  which 
had  been  shot,  they  had  taken  out  their  hearts  and 
livers  and  after  that  got  along  very  comfortably. 
Toward  evening,  all  were  made  happy  by  the  return 
of  the  detachment,  sent  out  in  the  morning  to  de 
stroy  the  Indian  towns  a  few  miles  off,  for  they  saw 
the  men  coming  back  with  sixteen  boats  loaded  with 
most  delicious  vegetables.  "Why,  it  beats  the 
Philadelphia  markets ! "  said  a  shoemaker  soldier, 
who  remembered  the  luscious  vegetables  which  he 
used  to  buy  on  High  Street. 


284         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Colonel  Hubley  noted  also  that  it  was  on  Tuesday, 
September  28th,  that  Colonel  Butler's  party  came 
into  the  camp  about  10  A.M.  of  that  morning. 

While  Colonel  Van  Cortlandt's  regiment  was  on 
its  way  to  rejoin  the  army,  Mary  Vrooman  told  her 
lover  the  mystery  of  "the  lake  cannon" — the  ter 
rific  report  as  of  artillery  that  had  alarmed  him  when 
a  sentinel  by  Lake  Cayuga's  shore,  and  had  even 
wakened  some  of  the  men  out  of  their  sleep.  This 
is  the  story  as  heard  from  the  old  squaw,  her  quon 
dam  foster-mother. 

The  Senecas  have  great  terror  of  this  Cayuga 
Lake  on  a  windy  day  or  in  a  squall,  for  they  think 
that  down  at  the  bottom  of  the  lake  lives  an  old 
squaw,  in  a  vast,  icy  cave.  All  around  her  are  caves 
and  hollows  of  ice,  which  she  keeps  ready  to  store 
away  the  bodies  that  sink  down  to  her. 

It  is  said  that  a  long  time  ago,  when  living  on  the 
earth,  she  conceived  a  passion  for  a  warrior,  but  he 
cared  nothing  for  her.  Once,  when  walking  along 
the  steep  cliff  overlooking  the  deepest  part  of  Cay 
uga  Lake,  she  pressed  her  desire.  He  seized  her  in 
his  anger  and  hurled  her  out  into  the  lake,  sullenly 
watching  her  struggles  until  she  disappeared.  Sink 
ing  down  far  under  the  dimpled  face  of  the  lake  that 
smiled  so  sweetly  in  the  sunshine,  and  far,  far  down 
below  where  fishes  can  live,  into  the  deep  water 
which  is  always  just  on  the  point  of  freezing  even  in 
summer,  her  spirit  lives.  Being  lonely  and  malig- 


TENTING  ON  THE  OLD  CAMP  GROUND      285 

nant  with  revenge,  she  keeps  all  who  come  to  her. 
She  buries  them  in  ice,  so  that  they  can  never  rise  to 
the  top  or  their  friends  reclaim  their  corpses.  Her 
chief  occupation  is  to  hew  out  new  caves  for  the 
dead.  It  is  the  blows  of  her  hatchet,  which  some 
times  dislodges  great  masses  of  ice  down  in  the 
caverns,  that  causes  those  terrible  sounds  like  artil 
lery,  and  which  the  Indians  call  "Ihe  lake  cannon." 

All  the  various  detachments  were  safely  united  at 
Fort  Reed,  before  the  order  to  march  homeward  was 
issued.  Trintje  and  Mary  Vrooman  were  very  happy 
in  their  reunion,  with  life  and  hope  and  joyful  pros 
pects.  It  was  a. pretty  scene  to  see  them  walking 
together,  to  the  delight  of  the  young  soldiers.  Yet 
they  were  but  one  pair  in  a  score  or  more  of  white 
captives  rescued  from  Indian  captivity,  and  now  safe 
and  happy. 

It  was  a  sight  never  to  be  forgotten,  too,  but  often 
recalled  in  after  years  by  the  veterans  who  under  the 
bright  stars  of  the  cool  September  night  gathered 
around  the  camp-fires  to  tell  again  the  story  of  their 
adventures  during  the  "  succotash  campaign "  and 
their  hopes  of  a  speedy  ending  of  the  war. 

All  wondered  whether  the  Spanish  alliance  would 
greatly  help  the  American  cause.  Spain  was  still 
the  symbol  of  wealth,  despite  her  real  poverty,  and 
"  Spanish  milled  dollars  "  were  what  the  Continental 
paper  shillings  promised  to  be  worth,  but  were  not. 
The  Pennsylvanians,  Jerseymen,  and  New  Yorkers 


286         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

were  unanimous  in  believing  that  Holland's  recogni 
tion,  when  it  came,  would  be  worth  more  than 
Spain's,  for,  besides  their  splendid  naval  record  in 
the  past,  the  Dutch  would  be  likely  to  loan  the 
Congress  plenty  of  hard  money. 

Before  we  see  the  rescued  captives  and  the  Conti 
nentals  turning  their  faces  eastward,  let  us  give  an 
account  of  the  officers'  banquet  by  the  banks  of  the 
Chemung  River. 


CHAPTER  XXV 

THE  BANQUET  ON  THE  BANKS  QF  THE  CHEMUNG 

THE  officers  of  Hand's  brigade  had  built  a  bowery 
of  timber  and  poles,  had  roofed  it  with  hemlock 
and  greenery,  and  decked  it  with  such  flags  and  tro 
phies  as  they  could  extemporize.  Over  mighty  fires, 
made  to  burn  up  and  leave  a  bed  of  live  red  coals,  the 
ox,  split  barbe-a-queue  (from  nozzle  to  tail)  and  laid 
across  a  huge  grid  made  of  green  poles,  roasted  and 
sizzled,  the  men  catching  the  savory  juice  and  melt 
ing  fat  for  gravy,  in  iron  spoons,  dishes,  and  even 
hollow  stones,  as  they  were  able.  Finally,  after  sev 
eral  hours  of  slow  roasting  and  the  occasional  renew 
ing  of  the  green  poles,  the  fare  was  served  up. 

Besides  the  carvable  parts  of  the  savory  and  juicy 
pieces  laid  out  on  slabs  of  timber  and  slices  of  bark, 
there  were  stews  made  of  the  beef's  heart  and  liver 
with  onions,  while  great  quantities  of  roasted  and 
boiled  ears  of  corn,  boiled  beans,  sliced  cucumbers, 
and  other  spoil  from  Indian  farms,  were  served  up 
in  such  metal  dishes  as  they  had  brought  in  the  camp 
mess  chests.  There  were  neither  tables  nor  chairs, 
but  on  the  logs  rolled  up  for  the  purpose,  or  on  piles 

287 


288    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

of  greenery  chopped  and  laid  for  the  purpose,  or  on 
the  grass,  the  officers  sat  down  and  ate  their  dinner 
with  that  zest  which  living  in  the  open  air  always 
imparts. 

Besides  water  from  the  sparkling  brook  and  the 
moderate  allowance  of  spirits  ordered  by  the  general, 
there  were  pitchers  of  milk  drawn  from  the  generous 
udder  of  Colonel  Hubley's  cow.  This  "lady  of  the 
glens  "  had  gone  through  the  whole  expedition,  surviv 
ing  the  dangers  of  miry  swamps,  scarce  pasturage, 
and  stampeding  Indians,  furnishing  milk  every  day. 
The  men  looked  on  "  Betsey  Ann,"  as  they  called 
her,  with  unusual  interest  and  affection.  On  this  day 
they  had  her  horns  so  decked  with  bits  of  red  flan 
nel  and  her  neck  so  wreathed  with  goldenrod  that 
she  hardly  knew  herself,  and  would  certainly  have 
blushed,  had  she  not  been  a  cow.  As  it  was,  Betsey 
Ann  really  seemed  to  enjoy  the  fun,  and  to  be  vain 
of  the  attentions  showered  on  her.  She  walked 
right  into  the  shallow  Chemung  River,  and  there 
mirrored,  if  not  admiring  herself,  in  the  tranquil 
water,  she  seemed  to  have  attained  the  summit  of 
bovine  pride. 

When  potatoes,  beans,  and  rich  roast  beef  and 
gravy  had  warmed  the  interior  economy  of  all  the 
officers,  and  every  one  was  in  a  merry  mood,  Gen 
eral  Hand  ordered  in  the  fifers  and  drummers  of 
the  brigade,  to  take  position  just  outside  the  bowery 
and  give  the  proper  responses  with  fife  music  and 


THE  BANQUET  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  CHEMUNG  289 

drum  ruffles.  He  then  rose  to  propose  the  first 
toast,  which  was,  "  To  the  Thirteen  States  and  their 
Sponsors."  All  the  officers  lifted  their  tin  cups  or 
pewter  mugs,  • —  it  would  seem  more  proper  to  write 
"  glasses,"  but  there  was  not  a  glass  tumbler  or 
wine  cup  in  the  army,  —  and,  touching  their  recepta 
cles  together,  drank  in  water,  milk,  or  whiskey,  accord 
ing  to  their  taste.  Then  followed  the  fife  and  drum 
music,  both  fifers  and  drummers  playing  most  hila 
riously. 

The  second  toast  proposed  was  to  "  the  Honorable 
the  American  Congress,"  -  —  a  body  of  men  much 
abused  but  also  hard  working  and  worthy  of  honor. 

The  third  toast  was  to  "  General  Washington  and 
the  American  Army."  At  once  rose  lively  memo 
ries  of  the  past,  of  Bunker  Hill  and  Long  Island, 
of  Oriskany,  Bennington,  and  Stillwater,  of  Trenton, 
of  Princeton  and  Valley  Forge,  of  Monmouth  and 
Butt's  Hill,  and  again  the  fifes  screamed  and  the 
drums  rattled  and  boomed. 

Now  came  glory  to  "the  Commander-in-chief  of 
the  Western  Expedition,"  Major-General  John  Sul 
livan,  whom  every  officer  honored,  whom  every  man 
in  the  army  followed  with  enthusiasm.  He  it  was 
who  first  of  all  in  the  colonies  advocated  indepen 
dence,  that  is,  separation  from  Great  Britain.  He  it 
was,  who,  when  a  corrupt  Parliament  under  a  for 
eigner-king,  infringed  and  abridged  the  right  of  a 
free  people  to  keep  and  bear  arms,  by  prohibiting 


2QO         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

the  importation  of  military  supplies  in  the  colonies, 
made  answer  by  raising  a  company  of  troops  and 
drilling  them.  Sullivan  and  his  companions  seized 
Fort  William  and  Mary,  and  thus  provided  the 
powder  which  filled  the  horns  at  Bunker  Hill. 

Could  any  one  have  looked  ahead,  from  that  lonely 
place  in  the  wilderness,  and  foreseen  the  future,  he 
would  have  discerned  that  the  Empire  State  would 
be  first  to  do  honor  in  public  memorials  to  New 
Hampshire's  brave  sons,  and  that  then,  and  not 
until  then,  his  native  state  would  rear  a  granite  shaft 
in  Sullivan's  memory,  on  the  site  of  the  old  meeting 
house  at  Durham,  where  the  powder  was  stored. 

Did  any  then  foresee  the  wilderness  blossoming 
as  the  rose  and  millions  rejoicing  in  the  glory  of 
civilization,  and  a  century  later  thousands  gathering 
on  the  battle-field  at  Newtown  to  do  honor  to  Sul 
livan,  the  leader  of  the  Western  Expedition,  and  that 
above  the  bones  of  the  dead  —  all  New  Hampshire 
men  —  should  rise  a  memorial  shaft  ? 

Did  Colonel  Cilley  dream  of  the  time,  only  a  few 
years  distant,  when  he  should  stand  by  his  loved 
commander's  grave-side  with  cocked  pistols,  demand 
ing  that  the  veteran's  body  should  have  honorable 
burial  and  that  those  who  would  seize  his  body  for 
debt  should  retreat  from  their  ghoulish  quest? 
Surely  may  John  Sullivan  be  named  as  one  of 
the  makers  of  the  Empire  State.  Had  he  been 
"  Braddocked,"  sacrificed  his  men  in  rashness,  met 


THE  BANQUET  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  CHEMUNG  2QI 

with  disaster,  or  led  home  a  broken  and  defeated 
remnant  of  an  army,  he  might  to-day  be  more  fa 
mous,  or  notorious,  in  American  history  than  he  is. 
As  it  was,  he  lost  only  forty  men  by  battle,  disease, 
and  accident,  and,  doing  his  work  so  well,  many  a 
book  professing  to  give  "  the  history  of  the  United 
States  "  does  not  even  mention  Sullivan's  expedition 
of  1779. 

Amid  forests,  though  so  far  inland,  the  American 
navy  was  not  forgotten.  While  the  Continentals 
upheld  the  cause  of  freedom  on  land,  our  sailors  and 
privateersmen  none  the  less,  but  as  bravely,  as  affec 
tionately,  kept  the  stars  and  stripes  floating  on  the 
sea,  and  this  in  the  teeth  of  the  mightiest  navy  in 
the  world.  It  was  not  Saratoga  or  Yorktown  that 
decided  the  war  of  the  Revolution.  It  was  the  clam 
ors  of  the  British  merchants,  whose  ships,  numbering 
many  thousands,  were  captured  by  our  armed  vessels. 
Did  the  Continental  army  take  six  thousand  pris 
oners  at  Saratoga  in  New  York,  and  eight  thousand 
at  Yorktown  in  Virginia?  The  navy  made  thirty 
thousand  British  men  prisoners,  and  captured  sup 
plies  vastly  more.  One  half  the  munitions  of  war 
and  soldiers'  equipments  for  Washington's  army 
came  through  the  privateers,  which  not  only  fought 
and  defended  themselves,  but  traded  or  won  from 
the  enemy  the  clothes,  powder,  and  accoutrements 
for  some  of  the  regiments  on  this  very  Western 
Expedition. 


THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Much,  and  in  some  years  most,  of  the  spoil  came 
from  St.  Eustatius  in  the  West  Indies  through  the 
Dutch,  and  not  a  little  direct  from  Birmingham ;  for 
Englishmen,  like  Americans  and  Dutchmen,  love 
money,  and  a  few  of  them  did  not  object  to  earn 
pounds,  shillings,  and  pence  in  a  clandestine  way. 
Every  month  Dutch  ships  loaded  in  British  ports 
with  goods  for  America  via  St.  Eustatius.  Even 
the  very  paper  on  which  Mr.  Thomas  Paine's  patri 
otic  tracts,  read  with  eagerness  before  the  camp-fires 
of  the  army,  were  printed,  was  from  Holland,  and 
brought  in  American  privateers  from  this  same  horn 
of  plenty  in  the  West  Indies. 

Yes,  the  soldiers  appreciated  our  navy,  and  the 
toast  was  drunk  by  Hand's  officers  amid  an  outburst 
of  drum  and  fife  music.  They  had  not  yet  heard  of 
Paul  Jones's  splendid  victory,  fought  about  this  very 
time.  Had  they  known  that,  the  welkin  would  have 
rung  again  with  cheers,  three  times  three. 

Not  many  of  the  Continentals  had  yet  seen  a 
French  soldier,  except  as  they  had  looked  upon 
Lafayette  and  a  few  individuals  from  France.  The 
red  and  white  uniforms  of  the  "  sparkling  Bourbon- 
naires "  were  not  yet  in  evidence,  but  they  were 
coming.  Lafayette's  rearrival  must  have  been  known 
at  this  time.  The  sixth  toast  was  "  Our  Faithful 
Allies,  the  United  Houses  of  Bourbon."  Our  men 
had  a  clear  apprehension  of  French  history,  and  real 
ized  how  the  Houses  of  Bourbon  had  been  united. 


THE  BANQUET  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  CHEMUNG  2Q3 

In  the  chat  following  the  toast  in  honor  of  France, 
Colonel  Hubley  recalled  that  one  of  Count  De 
Grasse's  vessels  was  named  L'Alamance;  that  in 
North  Carolina  was  a  beautiful  stream  of  water  by 
that  name ;  that  he  had  read  a  novel  with  the  same 
title,  and  that  at  this  place  the  Regulators  had  first 
stood  up  for  their  rights  against  the  brutal  and 
extravagant  royal  governor,  Tryon,  at  the  battle  of 
the  Alamance.  The  New  Yorkers  detested  the  very 
name  of  Governor  Tryon,  for  had  he  not  been  pro 
moted  by  the  king  for  his  vile  work,  and  made  gov 
ernor  of  New  York  ?  It  was  after  him  that  Tryon 
County,  in  which  Cherry  Valley  lay,  had  been  named. 
"  Bloody  Billy "  was  what  the  New  Yorkers  called 
him.  Just  now  this  same  ruffian,  instead  of  facing 
Continental  soldiers,  was  busy  in  marauding  expe 
ditions  in  Connecticut. 

The  seventh  or  keystone  toast,  as  the  proud  Penn- 
sylvanian,  Hubley,  called  it,  was  a  long  one.  It  is 
interesting  to  note  that  the  Congress  was  here  con 
ceived  of  as  in  the  feminine  gender.  Was  it  in  pure 
gallantry  and  in  the  yearning  loneliness  of  man  away 
from  sweethearts,  wives,  and  daughters  ?  Or,  was  it 
with  a  flavor  of  contempt  for  the  weakness  of  that 
body  ?  Whatever  be  the  philosophy  or  the  cynicism 
in  the  toast,  here  are  the  words :  "  May  the  Ameri 
can  Congress  and  all  her  legislative  representatives 
be  endowed  with  virtue  and  wisdom,  and  may  her 
independence  be  as  firmly  established  as  the  pillars 


2Q4    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

of  time  "  One  wonders  whether  at  the  mention  of 
"pillars,"  the  soldiers  and  officers,  paid  with  Conti 
nental  paper,  did  not  think  longingly  of.  the  silver 
columns  and  floating  scrolls  stamped  on  the  good, 
honest  coins  minted  by  their  new  ally,  the  king  of 
Spain, —  even  the  scroll  and  pillars  which  became 
our  graphic  mark  for  dollars, —  $. 

The  next  toast  expressed  the  hope  that  the  civil 
and  military  servants  of  the  state  would  always  live 
in  brotherhood,  and  the  man  of  war  ever  be  the  ser 
vant  of  the  son  of  peace.  "  May  the  citizens  of 
America,  and  her  soldiers,  be  ever  unanimous  in  the 
reciprocal  support  of  each  other." 

The  ninth  was  a  prayer  for  that  unity  which  gives 
strength.  Here  it  is  :  "  May  altercations,  discord, 
and  every  degree  of  fraud,  be  totally  banished  the 
peaceful  shore  of  America." 

The  tenth  was  a  protest  against  oblivion  and  the 
alleged  ingratitude  of  republics  :  "  May  the  memory 
of  the  brave  Lieutenant  Boyd  and  the  soldiers  under 
his  command,  who  were  horribly  massacred  by  the 
inhuman  savages  or  by  their  more  barbarous  and 
detestable  allies,  the  British  and  Tories,  on  the  I3th 
instant,  be  ever  dear  to  his  country." 

This  toast  was  drunk  in  silence,  and  for  a  moment 
all  bowed  their  heads  under  the  leafy  canopy.  Then, 
at  a  nod  from  General  Hand,  the  fifers  played  the 
Dead  March,  from  Handel's  "  Saul,"  after  which  the 
drums  beat  in  muffled  roll,  as  though  marching  in 


THE  BANQUET  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  CHEMUNG  2Q5 

funeral  procession,  winding  up  with  a  very  clear  imi 
tation  of  three  volleys  over  the  grave. 

This  prayer  was  answered  when,  in  1841,  the  bones 
of  Boyd  and  his  companions  were  disinterred  and 
taken  to  Rochester,  and  with  elaborate  military 
honors  deposited  in  Revolutionary  Hill  in  Mount 
Hope  Cemetery. 

Toast  number  eleven  showed  that,  while  our  men 
were  ready  to  leave  the  hardships  of  war  and  enjoy 
the  comforts  of  home,  they  were  willing  to  fight  on 
to  the  death,  unless  peace  came  with  honor.  The 
toast  explains  itself :  "  An  honorable  peace  with 
America,  or  perpetual  war  with  her  enemies." 

Toast  number  twelve  is  unique.  It  brings  up 
visions  of  Erin's  harp  and  Tara's  halls,  of  the  green 
flag,  of  the  shamrock,  of  St.  Patrick,  of  the  early 
centuries  when  Ireland  gave  Christian  light  and 
learning  to  Europe,  and,  last  but  not  least,  of  later 
days,  when  oppressive  British  trade  legislation  ruined 
Irish  industry,  especially  that  of  flax  raising  and 
linen  making,  which  had  been  introduced  into  the 
island  by  Dutchmen,  and  which  ruinous  legislation 
sent  tens  of  thousands  from  the  northern  counties  of 
Ireland  to  the  shores  of  America.  Settling  chiefly 
in  New  Hampshire  and  the  Middle  States,  they  were, 
powerfully  influential  in  the  making  of  at  least  one 
New  England  state,  and  of  western  Pennsylvania  and 
Virginia.  They  and  their  sons  furnished  a  tremen 
dous  proportion  of  soldiers  to  the  Continental  army. 


296    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Sullivan  himself,  most  of  his  New  Hampshire  colo 
nels,  officers,  and  soldiers,  were  of  Irish  stock,  and 
so  were  Proctor,  of  the  artillery,  and  Hand,  of  the 
light  corps,  and  many  of  their  fellow  Pennsylvanians. 
Indeed,  it  might  not  be  too  hazardous  to  assert,  or  at 
least  conjecture,  that  the  majority  of  men  in  this 
expedition  were  of  the  stock  of  North  Ireland. 

It  was  not,  then,  merely  a  desire  to  compliment 
Generals  Sullivan,  Proctor,  or  Hand,  or  all  of  them,  that 
prompted  the  toast.  The  cynical  critic  may,  indeed, 
notice  in  the  wording  of  the  toast  that  vagueness  of 
ideas  which  is  so  often  associated  with  the  Celt's 
utterances.  Further,  since  the  toast  contained  a 
wish,  rather  than  an  assertion  or  prophecy,  does  it 
not  recall  the  Addisonian  words,  "  'Tis  not  in  mortals 
to  command  success,  but  we'll  do  more,  .  .  .  We'll 
deserve  it." 

The  toast  was  this,  —  "  May  the  kingdom  of  Ireland 
merit  a  stripe  in  the  American  standard."  It  was 
drunk  with  rollicking  delight,  and  the  fifers  played. 

In  defiance  of  all  those  superstitions  which  gather 
around  the  number  thirteen,  inherited  from  medi- 
aevalism,  but  pointing  back  to  the  presence  of  the 
Master  with  the  eleven  disciples  and  the  traitor  Judas, 
which  even  yet  requires  the  number  to  be  omitted  in 
a  hospital,  and  often  in  other  places,  but  to  which  no 
American  ought  ever  to  pay  any  attention,  the  list  of 
toasts  conformed  to  the  number  of  the  states. 

The  poor  pack  horse,  which  began  business  before 


297 

the  days  of  army  mules,  was  the  butt  of  the  Conti 
nentals,  even  as  his  long-eared  cousin  is  yet  with  our 
soldiers.  The  last  toast  was  :  "  May  the  enemies  of 
America  be  metamorphosed  into  pack  horses  and 
sent  on  a  western  expedition  against  the  Indians." 

All  drank,  amid  roars  of  laughter,  and  the  fifers 
played  the  "  Rogue's  March." 

By  this  time  the  great  star  clock  of  the  sky  showed 
that  it  was  near  midnight.  The  men  of  the  rank  and 
file  were  already  wrapped  in  slumber,  and  the  officers 
happily  laid  themselves  down  to  sleep  on  their  hem 
lock  boughs.  Most  of  the  watch-fires  had  burnt  low, 
having  so  far  gone  down  as  to  leave  only  here  and 
there  a  suggestion  of  red  flame.  Beyond  the  stream 
and  out  on  the  flats,  one  who  listened  carefully  could 
hear  the  sentinels  walking,  and  the  cry  of  "  All  is 
well." 


CHAPTER   XXVI 

BACK    TO    FORT    SULLIVAN 

IT  was  now  time  to  prepare  to  move  eastward,  so 
the  sick  and  lame  soldiers  were  ordered  down  the 
river  in  boats.  Then  the  palisades  of  the  fort,  with 
all  the  timber  stuff,  boxes,  casks,  etc.,  were  heaped 
up  and  set  on  fire. 

The  next  day's  march  took  them  past  the  old  battle 
field  of  the  29th,  and  the  night's  encampment  was  on 
the  same  spot  as  that  occupied  on  August  27th. 

At  two  o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  the  last  day  of 
September,  they  were  within  sight  of  Fort  Sullivan, 
at  Tioga  Point.  In  the  same  regular  line  and  order 
of  march,  exactly  as  when  they  left  the  fort,  over  a 
month  before,  they  moved  forward.  Besides  the 
whole  garrison  coming  out  under  arms  to  meet  them, 
there  was  a  salvo  of  thirteen  rounds  from  the  two 
cannon  of  the  fort,  a  salute  which  Proctor's  artillery 
duly  returned. 

Once  back  and  inside  the  fort,  Major  Fogg,  one  of 
General  Poor's  staff  officers,  and  a  graduate  of  Har 
vard  College,  wrote  out  his  impressions. 

"  Although  we  are  now  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles 
298 


BACK    TO    FORT    SULLIVAN  2QQ 

from  peaceful  inhabitants,  yet  we  consider  ourselves  at 
home  and  the  expedition  ended :  having  fulfilled  the 
expectations  of  our  country,  by  beating  the  enemies 
and  penetrating  and  destroying  their  whole  country. 
The  undertaking  was  great  and  the  task  arduous. 
The  multiplicity  of  disappointments  occasioning  a  long 
delay  at  the  beginning,  foreboded  a  partial,  if  not  a 
total,  frustration  of  our  design ;  but  the  unbounded 
ambition  and  perseverance  of  our  commander  and 
army  led  him  to  the  full  execution,  contrary  to  our 
most  sanguine  expectations ;  .  .  .  a  march  of  three 
hundred  miles  was  performed,  a  battle  was  fought, 
and  a  whole  country  desolated  in  thirty  days.  The  very 
evils  that  first  predicted  a  defeat  were  a  chain  of 
causes  in  our  favor.  Not  a  single  gun  was  fired  for 
eighty  miles  on  our  march  out,  or  an  Indian  seen  on 
our  return.  The  extraordinary  continuance  of  fair 
weather  has  infinitely  facilitated  our  expectation; 
having  never  been  detained  a  single  day ;  nor  has 
there  been  an  hour's  rain  since  the  thirtieth  day  of 
August.  He  who  views  the  scene  with  indifference 
in  view  of  the  special  hand  and  smiles  of  Providence 
being  so  apparently  manifested  is  worse  than  an 
infidel. 

"The  question  will  naturally  arise,  What  have 
you  to  show  for  your  exploits  ?  Where  are  your 
prisoners  ? 

"  To  which  I  reply,  that  the  rags  and  emaciated 
bodies  of  our  soldiers  must  speak  for  our  fatigue,  and 


3<X)    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

when  the  querist  will  point  out  a  mode  to  tame  a 
partridge  or  the  expediency  of  hunting  wild  turkeys 
with  light  horse,  I  will  show  him  our  prisoners. 
The  nests  are  destroyed,  but  the  birds  are  still  on  the 
wing." 

Another  officer  wrote  :  "  Thus,  by  the  perseverance, 
good  conduct  and  determined  resolution  of  our  com- 
mander-in-chief,  with  the  assistance  of  his  council  and 
the  full  determination  of  his  troops  to  execute,  have 
we  fully  accomplished  the  great  end  and  intentions 
of  this  important  expedition ;  and  I  flatter  myself  we 
fully  surpassed  the  most  sanguine  expectations  of 
those  whose  eyes  were  more  immediately  looking  to 
us  for  success.  The  glorious  achievements  we  have 
given  in  extending  our  conquest  so  far,  and  at  the 
same  time  rendering  them  so  very  complete,  will  make 
no  inconsiderable  balance  even  in  the  present  politics 
of  America." 

How  the  army  looked  when  at  Fort  Sullivan,  in  the 
first  days  of  lovely  October,  may  be  learned  from  Her 
man  Clute's  letter,  written  to  Schenectady :  — 

"  DEAR  MOTHER  :  I  feel  like  a  veteran  at  the  end 
of  the  war,  for  here  we,  that  is,  the  whole  army,  are 
at  Fort  Sullivan,  from  which  we  started  about  a  month 
ago.  It  is  quite  a  substantial  fort,  with  two  gates. 
The  walls  are  made  of  palisades  three  thick,  and  the 
blockhouses  are  very  strong.  Colonel  Shrieve  has 
kept  everything  in  good  order  here,  but  in  two  or 


BACK    TO    FORT    SULLIVAN  30 I 

three  days  all  will  be  burned  up,  and  this  place  will  be 
left  to  the  deer,  the  bears,  and  the  rattlesnakes  again. 
I  do  not  believe  that  the  savages  will  inhabit  the  place 
for  several  years  to  come ;  but  until  the  white  people 
fully  occupy  this  country,  the  Iroquois  will  make 
Tioga  Point  their  rendezvous,  for  all  their  southern 
and  some  of  their  eastern  and  western  expeditions. 

"  We  had  two  days'  march  from  Fort  Reed.  The 
night  we  arrived  here,  Colonel  Shrieve,  the  governor 
of  the  garrison,  had  a  most  elegant  dinner  provided 
for  the  general  and  field  officers  of  the  army.  Be 
sides  the  good  things  to  eat,  Proctor's  regimental  band 
and  the  fife  and  drum  corps  played  during  most  of 
the  evening. 

"  On  Friday  morning,  General  Sullivan  sent  his 
secretary,  General  Brewer,  to  give  an  account  to  Con 
gress  of  the  great  success  of  the  expedition,  for  cer 
tainly  it  has  been  wonderful.  Most  of  us  have  kept 
well.  We  have  had  almost  a  month  of  perfectly 
splendid  weather,  with  little  rain  and  no  storms.  We 
have  often  been  tired  and  some  of  us  lame,  but  alto 
gether  there  have  been  only  forty  men  out  of  the 
whole  army  that  have  lost  their  lives,  and  this  includes 
all  who  died  by  accident.  We  had  three  battles,  one 
at  Chemung,  in  which  seven  of  Colonel  Hubley's  men 
were  killed ;  the  big  one  at  Newtown,  where,  with  all 
the  powder  burned  and  lead  fired  off,  only  three  or  four 
men  were  killed,  while  five  have  since  died  of  their 
wounds ;  and  the  Groveland  ambuscade,  in  which 


3O2         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

seventeen  were  killed.  The  others  were  shot  by  Ind 
ians  hid  in  the  bush,  met  death  by  accident,  or  were 
drowned.  Not  one  of  the  soldiers  has  died  through 
disease. 

"When  we  started  out,  we  had  only  twenty-two 
days'  rations  of  flour  and  sixteen  of  meat.  So  our 
march  has  been  made  on  half  allowance,  but  we  had 
more  vegetables  than  we  wanted.  A  good  deal  of 
our  time  has  been  taking  up  grating  corn.  We 
took  old  tin  pans  and  punched  holes  in  them  with 
a  bayonet,  and  thus  made  graters.  It  was  tedious 
work,  and  half  the  men  were  kept  up  at  night  after 
the  day's  march  was  over,  grating  corn.  We  made  the 
mess  into  a  kind  of  a  cake.  Sometimes  we  mixed 
the  rough  meal  with  boiled  beans  or  pumpkins,  and, 
pounding  or  squeezing  it  into  paste,  we  baked  the 
patties  over  the  fire  or  on  hot  stones,  and  it  tasted 
good. 

"  But  oh,  how  glad  I  was  at  Fort  Reed  to  get  a 
good  slice  of  fresh  roast  beef !  Once  in  a  while  I 
enjoyed  a  glass  of  fresh  milk.  Out  of  the  seven  hun 
dred  oxen  we  took  with  us  on  the  start,  some  kept  up 
till  we  got  to  Canandaigua,  but  Colonel  Hubley's  cow, 
which  is  a  white  and  black  creature  of  the  Friesland 
breed,  showed  herself  a  wonder.  She  has  actually 
been  with  us  all  the  time  and  given  us  her  milk  every 
day.  I  was  really  sorry  to  part  with  her  when  we 
put  her  in  the  boat  yesterday,  to  send  her,  along  with 
the  officers'  horses,  down  to  Wyoming." 


BACK    TO    FORT    SULLIVAN  303 

Here  follows  an  account  of  his  finding  Mary  Vroo- 
man,  of  the  march  to  Fort  Reed,  his  experiences 
there,  and  the  return  march  down  the  Chemung  Val 
ley  to  Tioga  Point. 

"  On  Saturday,  General  Sullivan  gave  an  elegant 
entertainment,  inviting  all  the  generals  and  field  offi 
cers  of  the  army  to  dine  with  him.  I  begged  to  be 
allowed  to  wait  on  the  table,  for  I  enjoyed  seeing  the 
officers  all  together  and  hearing  them  talk.  They  actu 
ally  did  have  a  long  table,  made  of  split  timber,  and  a 
great  many  more  pieces  of  table  furniture  than  were 
visible  during  our  march.  This  was  the  first  time 
that  I  have  seen  all  the  officers  of  the  army  together. 
They  are  a  handsome  set  of  men,  I  can  tell  you. 

"  Everything  was  properly  packed  up  that  was  to 
be  taken  away.  Then,  all  the  stores  and  other  bag 
gage,  the  cannon  and  the  coehorn,  were  put  on  board 
the  boats.  After  resting  on  Sunday,  the  whole  army 
was  to  move  on  Monday  morning,  most  of  the  men 
to  march  overland  to  Easton,  via  Wyoming,  and  the 
boats  to  go  down  the  river. 

"  The  fun  of  jollity  culminated  on  Saturday  night. 
After  supper,  a  genuine  Indian  dance  was  arranged, 
in  which  scores  of  the  most  athletic  men  in  Hand's 
brigade  took  part.  A  young  sachem  of  the  Oneida 
tribe  was  the  director  of  the  dance,  and  was  assisted 
by  several  Indians.  During  the  day  the  officers,  who 
were  to  take  part  in  the  fun,  made  wooden  masks  to 


304         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

represent  Indian  deities  and  spirits  of  the  mountain 
and  the  river.  These,  grotesquely  painted,  were  put 
on  when  they  danced.  The  music  was  original,  the 
sachem,  singing  an  Indian  song,  started  the  move 
ments,  clashing  together  his  rattle,  knife,  and  pipe. 
At  the  end  of  every  measure,  occupying  five  or  ten 
minutes  each,  the  Indians  set  up  a  war-whoop,  and 
the  dancing  continued  several  hours. 

"  The  next  morning,  after  breakfast,  the  Oneida 
warriors,  who  had  been  faithful  guides,  gathered 
together  and  received  presents.  Then,  bidding  us 
good  by,  they  started  off  for  their  own  villages. 

"  At  eight  o'clock  the  march  began,  and  on  Thurs 
day,  at  three  o'clock,  the  whole  army,  reaching  Wyo 
ming  by  land  and  by  water,  made  their  encampment 
in  the  same  order  as  that  of  the  3Oth  of  July.  News 
came  from  General  Washington  that  Count  D'Es- 
taing  had  arrived  with  a  fleet  and  an  army,  and  that 
many  of  Sullivan's  men  would  be  required  to  join  a 
new  campaign  of  action  as  soon  as  the  winter  was 
over. 

"This  happy  news  cheered  up  the  Continental  boys. 
As  it  is  easier  to  march  faster  when  going  homeward, 
they  did  so,  moving  with  an  alert  step  that  surprised 
themselves.  Sullivan,  turning  the  command  over  to 
General  Clinton,  set  out  on  Saturday,  the  Qth,  having 
the  day  before  sent  ahead  a  large  party  of  pioneers 
to  repair  the  road.  It  was  not  possible  to  get  wagons 
to  carry  the  baggage,  and  as  they  had  to  leave  their 


BACK    TO    FORT    SULLIVAN  305 

boats  behind,  the  only  thing  for  the  officers  to  do  was 
to  break  up  their  chests,  and  load  their  baggage  on 
pack  horses.  As  these  were  very  weak,  many  of  the 
officers,  like  private  soldiers,  had  to  carry  their  own 
baggage  on  their  backs.  Only  four  miles,  up  the 
terribly  long  hill,  were  made  on  Sunday,  the  loth, 
and  the  encampment  was  on  very  stony  ground. 
Again,  through  the  awful  swamps  they  marched, 
and  on  Wednesday  fresh  wagons  came  to  help  solve 
the  question  of  baggage.  When  they  reached  Larn- 
ard's  Tavern,  as  one  officer  wrote,  'This  was  the 
beginning  of  the  settlement  of  a  Christian  country.' 
It  seemed  strange  indeed  to  men  coming  out  of  the 
forest  to  meet  with  houses  built  in  civilized  style. 
As  some  of  the  soldiers  were  able  to  get  dinner  at 
the  country  houses,  they  felt  as  if  they  were  sharing 
the  luxury  of  palaces. 

"  Orders  were  issued  to  the  private  soldiers  to 
make  themselves  as  clean  and  presentable  as  possible, 
for  the  march  into  Easton ;  but  officers  made  a  virtu 
ous  determination  to  pass  through  the  town  without 
taking  a  single  drink  at  any  of  the  taverns.  This  was 
less  a  matter  of  temperance  than  a  determination  to 
punish  extortioners,  as  it  had  been  told  that  the  shop 
keepers  of  Easton  had  laid  in  great  supplies  of  eata 
bles  and  drinkables,  for  which  they  expected  to  charge 
very  high  prices. 

"  One  lieutenant,  who  made  himself  both  inspector 
and  censor,  noticed  that,  despite  the  temptation,  not 


306         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

a  single  soul  entered  a  tavern.  Yet,  for  his  vigilant 
censorship,  the  officer  had  to  suffer  at  the  hands  of 
some  inhabitant,  who  either  had  a  grudge  against  him 
or  was  eager  to  break  both  the  tenth  commandment 
and  the  eighth,  also.  Having  left  his  underclothes 
with  a  washerwoman,  to  be  renovated,  these  necessi 
ties  were  all  stolen  from  the  clothes  line  during  the 
night.  Not  having  a  second  shirt  to  his  back,  he 
had  to  go  around  wrapped  in  bedclothes,  begging  a 
shirt  and  a  pair  of  socks  from  his  comrades.  His 
special  disappointment  was  in  this,  that  he  wished 
to  go  with  the  whole  army  to  attend  worship. 

"  Evidently  his  fellow-officers  magnified  their  privi 
leges,  for  the  man  who  had  to  stay  home  and  heard 
not,  wrote  that  the  Rev.  Dr.  Evans  preached  '  a  very 
Elegant  Oration  .  .  .  Sutible  to  the  Occasion.'  How 
ever,  having  been  properly  shod  and  beshirted,  the 
officer  without  undergarments  consoled  himself  for 
lack  of  spiritual  nourishment  by  getting,  at  a  farm 
house,  '  Buckwheat  Cakes,  Butter  Milk  and  honey 
which  was  a  very  great  rarity  indeed.'  A  more 
cheerful  view  of  things  was  possible  the  next  day, 
for  he  recorded  in  his  diary  that  '  Part  of  my  Cloaths 
was  found  to-day  hid  in  the  mountain,  but  two  of  my 
best  shirts  is  yet  a  missing.'  " 


CHAPTER   XXVII 

THE    AFTERMATH 

IT   now  remains  to  gather  up  the  threads  of  our 
story,  and   to   show  how  Sullivan's   Continentals 
were  the  pathfinders  of  the  American  Revolution. 

From  Easton,  it  proved  to  be  more  convenient  for 
the  rescued  captives  to  be  taken  to  Philadelphia,  and 
thence  distributed  among  their  friends.  On  this  ac 
count,  the  two  Vrooman  ladies  had  the  pleasure  of 
spending  the  autumn  and  winter  in  the  capital  by  the 
Delaware. 

There  again,  in  the  hospitable  home  of  Colonel 
Jabez  Eyre,  during  a  fortnight's  furlough  in  Novem 
ber,  nearly  the  whole  party  that  had  met  in  May 
assembled,  but  this  time  with  new  faces.  Appar 
ently  none  the  worse  for  their  exile  in  the  Seneca 
country  were  the  two  young  women  who  had  seen 
life  among  savages.  Mary  Vrooman  sat  as  guest, 
though  "  alone,  yet  not  alone."  Her  lover  and  res 
cuer,  Herman  Clute,  was  in  camp  with  his  regiment. 
Of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Claes  Vrooman  it  was  frequently 
remarked  (sideways  and  quietly),  "  What  a  handsome 
couple !  " 

307 


3O8         THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

Two  young  officers  of  the  Continental  army  had  also 
hung  their  chapeaux,  or  three-cornered  cocked  hats, 
in  Colonel  Eyre's  hall.  One,  hearty,  ruddy,  and 
with  a  polished  elegance  of  manner  that  suggested 
a  long  and  unconscious  inhalation  of  a  refined  social 
atmosphere,  was  an  artillery  officer,  Phineas  Foter- 
all,  who  had  been  trained  in  Colonel  Eyre's  Pennsyl 
vania  artillery.  He  had  just  received  his  transfer 
and  commission  as  captain  in  Proctor's  regiment 
(now,  in  1900,  and  for  scores  of  years  past,  the 
Second  United  States  Artillery). 

The  other,  pale,  and  still  bearing  traces  of  suffering, 
was  a  lieutenant  of  infantry  in  the  New  Hampshire 
line.  He  had  been  desperately  wounded  in  the  battle 
of  Newtown,  but,  nursed  (and  shall  we  not  say  saved  ?) 
by  the  tender  care  of  Henrietta  Harby  in  Fort  Sulli 
van,  now  his  own  appraisement  of  health  was  that  it 
was  almost  at  par. 

Of  these  two  patriots,  we  need  but  say  that  both 
were  "Spei  et  in  sfle,"  —  the  sons  of  hope,  and  in  hope, 
as  the  Dutch  say ;  or,  we  might  call  them  both  "  the 
extinguishers  of  names."  The  one  expected — un 
grateful  man  —  to  bury  in  his  own  gentile  name  that 
of  his  honored  colonel,  as  well  as  that  of  the  colonel's 
daughter.  He  loved  his  leader  not  less,  but  his 
leader's  daughter  more.  The  other,  Uriah  Perry, 
was  happy,  looking  forward  to  peace  and  the  time 
when  he  might  bear  away,  to  the  Irish-Yankee  land 
of  granite  and  noble  character,  New  Hampshire, 


THE    AFTERMATH  309 

this  Pennsylvania  maid.  Hers  was  a  family  name  so 
rare  that  some  would  deny  its  very  existence  among 
those  Swiss  and  German  folk  called  "  Pennsylvania 
Dutch." 

General  Hand,  in  his  best  spirits,  was  the  lion  of 
the  hour.  It  was  noticed  that  the  bosom  of  his  new 
buff  and  blue  coat  was  so  full  as  to  seem  padded. 
Had  the  tailors  made  him  a  dandy  ?  Honored  by 
Washington,  idolized  by  his  soldiers,  saluted  on  all 
sides  as  Sullivan's  ablest  lieutenant  in  the  campaign, 
he  was  less  thoughtful  of  himself  than  of  others.  On 
first  reaching  Philadelphia,  even  before  holding  one 
interview  with  a  tailor,  he  had  repaired  at  once  to  con 
sult  the  jewellers,  whose  shops  lay  between  Second  and 
Dock  streets.  Some  of  these,  despite  war,  were  still 
open.  He  was  known  to  have  left  the  design  of  a 
rare  flower,  and  to  have  talked  about  particular  shades 
of  green  and  pink  enamels. 

Now,  after  the  dinner  and  the  drinking  of  healths 
(in  tea,  not  wine)  to  the  Congress,  Washington,  Sul 
livan,  all  his  colonels  and  his  brave  army,  with  one 
special  bumper  to  the  riflemen  —  which  actually  made 
Claes  Vrooman's  face  turn  as  red  as  a  rose, — a  clos 
ing  liquid  tribute  was  offered,  with  super-exceeding 
enthusiasm,  to  General  Hand  himself.  When  palates 
had  been  tickled,  all  eyes,  if  not  voices,  called  for  a 
response. 

The  blushing  Irish-American  rose,  put  back  his 
chair  rather  far,  and  then  said :  — 


3IO    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

"  I  respond,  by  calling  out  mother,  wife,  and  maid 
for  honorable  decoration,  and  ask  them  to  come  for 
ward.  Mrs.  Eyre !  " 

The  matron  rose  and  approached  the  gallant  hero, 
who,  drawing  the  stars  and  stripes  from  behind  his 
lapels  and  breast  buttons,  handed  the  flag  with  grace 
and  thanks  to  Colonel  Eyre's  wife. 

"There,  madam,  my  May  promise  is  fulfilled. 
Your  flag  and  our  country's  waved  at  the  Seneca 
castles  of  Kanedasaga  and  Genesee." 

The  matron  with  beaming  smile  courtesied  and  re 
sumed  her  seat.  "  A  precious  heirloom  now,"  she 
said,  as  she  glanced  at  Margaret  and  Captain  Fot- 
erall. 

"  Miss  Margaret  Eyre  and  Miss  Mary  Vrooman, 
come  here  together !  " 

The  two  maidens,  one  fair,  rose-tinted  and  white, 
the  other  brown,  with  the  rich  glow  of  health  gained 
in  out-door  life,  stood  together,  making  a  rare  picture 
of  varied  loveliness. 

"  Miss  Eyre,"  said  the  gallant  brigadier,  "in  May  I 
heard  your  request  and  in  August  I  heard  my  friend 
Vrooman's  story. 

"  Miss  Vrooman,  I  learned  from  Herman  Clute's 
own  lips  his  adventure  at  Lake  Cayuga.  May  he 
soon,  victorious  and  decorated  as  an  officer,  come 
back  to  be  bridegroom." 

"This,  to  Margaret  —  the  pressed  glen  flowers, 
roots,  leaves,  and  blossoms,  the  last  as  well  as  the 


THE    AFTERMATH  311 

first  from  your  friend  Mary."  Suiting  action  to 
word,  he  handed  neatly  arranged  specimens  of  the 
glen  flower  of  ancient  lineage. 

"To  both,  for  bridal  gifts,  when  the  happy  hour 
comes,  I  hand  you  these  jewels,  with  my  congratula 
tions  in  advance." 

Thereupon,  the  big-hearted  Irishman  drew  out  of 
his  inner  pocket  two  shagreen  cases.  Each  was 
about  as  large  in  perimeter  as  a  Spanish  milled 
dollar,  but  thicker,  and  apparently  as  round  as 
Giotto's  O.  Holding  one  in  each  hand,  between 
thumb  and  forefinger,  their  springs  toward  the 
maidens,  he  touched  them  with  his  digital  tips. 

Thereupon  the  lids  flew  open  and  revealed  twin 
wonders.  Resting  upon  a  silvery  green  bed  of  silken 
plush,  which  looked  like  fresh  moss,  heavy  with  dew, 
as  seen  in  morning's  light  in  shadow,  was  a  stem  of 
gold,  with  serrated  leaves  of  green,  and  four-petalled 
blooms  of  pink  enamel,  —  a  triumph  of  the  jeweller's 
art.  It  was  the  glen  flower,  Primula  Mistassinica, 
glorified  in  the  royal  metal,  with  the  colors,  not  of 
nature  woven  in  the  loom  of  light,  but  of  art,  wrought 
by  fire. 

After  the  shower  of  exclamations  of  delight, 
thanks,  admiration,  and  —  we  must  tell  the  truth 
—  a  kiss  simultaneously  on  both  the  general's  cheeks 
by  two  happy  maidens,  the  gems  were  passed  around 
for  further  joyous  appreciation.  During  this,  at  a 
nod  from  the  general,  Trintje  Vrooman  walked  over 


312          THE    PATHFINDERS    OF    THE    REVOLUTION 


THE  WHITE  COCKADE 


HE 


iiii  i-i  T  / 

pr  ^  J  '   * 

•  7  C  1 

'3   '   j   '  'j  —  J1    'J  T  J    'J  j 

-^  ' 

fl  ly-..  .f   .-!     y       1  .       1  J       |       j       „      •[    |       1  ^  J= 

[j       r       j       T     |J 

*T\ 

3   I 

to  the  virginal,  followed  by  Claes,  her  husband. 
She  opened  the  pretty  rosewood  case  and  played  the 
air  of  the  Wilhelmus  Lied,  while  Claes,  her  husband, 
sang  with  a  fine  tenor  voice  the  stirring  words. 
"  Good,"  cried  General  Hand,  when  the  last  stanza 
was  finished.  "  If  it  were  Saint  Patrick's  Day,  I 
should  want  the  shamrock,  but  now  I  am  only  too 
happy  to  look  on  the  glen  flower  blooming  in  fresh 


THE    AFTERMATH  313 

glory  on  maiden's  bosom,"  —for  there  the  twain  had 
placed  their  trophies  — "  and  now  for  the  '  White 
Cockade.'  " 

Thereupon,  Margaret  Eyre  who  knew  the  music 
well  played  the  famous  Jacobite  air. 

The  party  broke  up,  for  the  sound  of  drums  and 
trumpets  was  still  in  the  land.  The  Dutch  boys  in 
the  Hudson  Valley  were  singing  the  Amsterdam 
street  song,  "  Hier  komt  Paul  Jones  Aan,"  telling 
how  his  own  ship  had  gone  down  near  an  English 
cape,  and  also  how  "  he  was  a  born  American  "  — 
which  this  Scotsman  wasn't. 

Soon  the  various  alliances  ripened  and  came  to 
the  fruit-bearing  period.  That  with  Spain  yielded 
nothing.  That  with  Holland  brought  us  fourteen 
million  of  dollars  and  naval  help,  in  time  to  pay 
off  the  veterans  of  Yorktown  and  restore  our 
credit.  While  Washington,  threatening  the  British 
General  Clinton  in  New  York,  skilfully  concealed 
his  march,  with  the  red  and  white  uniformed  French 
troops,  the  "  Sparkling  Bourbonnaires,"  through 
Philadelphia  to  Yorktown,  the  great  Admiral  Rod 
ney  with  his  mighty  British  fleet,  after  demolishing 
the  Spanish  ships,  sailed  —  to  help  Cornwallis  ? 
No! 

Rather  did  it  seem  best  to  this  "  man  of  action  "  to 
pass  by  his  countryman  and  sail  to  the  West  Indies 
to  clear  out  the  depot  of  the  American  army  supplies. 
So  thither  he  now  betook  himself  and  his.  ships  of 


314    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

the  line.  Capturing  the  helpless  place,  he  found 
there  fifty  American  privateers,  and  three  men-of- 
war  with  two  thousand  of  our  sailors  —  but  he  lost 
Cornwallis,  whom  Washington  and  our  French  allies 
compelled  to  surrender  with  seven  thousand  men. 
While  the  British  soldiers  in  Virginia  listened  for  his 
cannon,  only  the  voice  of  the  auctioneer  was  heard 
at  St.  Eustatius. 

Herman  Clute  did  gain  an  officer's  epaulettes. 
After  being  paid  in  full,  in  good  Dutch  silver  and 
gold  at  Newburg,  he  returned  to  Schenectady,  and  in 
the  old  church  was  married  to  Mary  by  Domine 
Vrooman.  He  lived  on  Ferry  Street,  while  Trintje  and 
Claes  dwelt  on  Martelaar's  straat.  This  thorough 
fare,  as  soon  as  the  shaky  "confederation"  was  over 
and  the  Constitution  made  the  thirteen  common 
wealths  one  and  indivisible,  was  named  State  Street, 
the  blood  of  the  martyrs  having  proved  the  seed  of 
the  nation. 

One  might  have  read  in  the  Philadelphia  papers  of 
the  marriage  of  the  couples  known  in  life  and  to 
their  descendants  as  Captain  and  Mrs.  Foterall  and 
Major  and  Mrs.  Perry  —  for  this  rank  did  the  New 
Hampshire  hero  attain. 

The  latter  lived  long  enough  to  survive  and  attend 
the  burial  of  his  beloved  commander  Sullivan,  but 
not  to  see  his  native  state  —  only  after  New  York 
had  done  abundant  honor  to  his  memory  —  rear  on 
the  site  of  the  old  Congregational  meeting-house  at 


THE    AFTERMATH  315 

Durham,  New  York,  a  monument  to  the  honor  of 
Major  John  Sullivan.  To  Broadhead  of  Pennsyl 
vania,  and  Clark  of  Illinois,  like,  yes,  greater  honors 
should  yet  be  paid. 

Long  before  the  heroes  of  the  Revolution  had  been 
gathered  to  their  fathers,  "Sullivan's  road,"  made  by 
the  tramp  of  his  army  and  the  axes  of  his  pioneers, 
had  become  the  highway  of  empire. 

One  can  stand  on  Cornell  Heights  to-day,  or  in  the 
White  Library  of  the  University,  and  through  the 
plate  glass  that  at  once  frames  in  and  reveals  God's 
picture  of  lake  and  hill,  valley  and  flat,  see  with 
the  mind's  eye  history's  shining  procession.  Hither 
come  Sullivan's  veterans,  often  with  brides  that  had 
been  captives  rescued  by  themselves,  to  be  founders 
of  towns  and  cities.  Yonder,  with  faces  flushed  with 
hope,  emerge  the  beginners  of  a  better  time — dis 
coverers  of  New  Jerusalems  and  Earthly  Paradises. 
The  lumberman  gives  way  to  the  merchant  and  arti 
san.  On  the  old  Indian  trails  are  laid  highways  of 
steel.  Pennsylvania  and  Yankee  meet  at  Penn-Yan. 
Forest  industries  thrive.  The  axeman  clears  the 
way  for  the  farmer.  Lovely  homes,  fair  as  the  glen 
flower,  spring  up.  Churches,  schools,  colleges,  all 
the  blooms  of  civilization,  rise  out  of  the  land,  ap 
parently,  much  as  the  earth  produces  the  flower. 
In  time,  "  Sullivan's  road "  becomes  the  fugitive 
slave's  path  to  manhood,  as  he  follows  the  North 
Star  to  freedom. 


3l6    THE  PATHFINDERS  OF  THE  REVOLUTiON 

Yet  under  the  joy  of  life  is  its  travail.  Nor,  amid 
all  the  beauty,  comfort,  triumph  of  to-day,  do  we  forget 
the  toil  of  Sullivan's  Continentals,  the  Pathfinders  of 
the  Revolution. 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  AMERICAN  HISTORY  SERIES 

THE       ROMANCE 
OF     DISCOVERY: 

A   THOUSAND   YEARS    OF    EXPLORATION,   ETC. 

By  Wm.  Elliot  Griffis,   D.D. 
Three  volumes  $1.50  each  ;  or  the  set  in  a  box,  $4.50 


It  is  one  of  the  most  useful  and  entertaining  books.  Dr. 
Griffis  has  shown  how  the  dryest  facts  of  history  are  really 
full  of  romance,  if  we  look  beneath  the  surface  and  note  the 
relation  one  to  another,  and  he  presents  these  facts  in  a  most 
attractive  form.  It  is  an  admirable  introduction  to  the  study 
of  history  and  cannot  fail  to  interest  every  reader  old  and 
young.  —  Brooklyn  Daily  Eagle. 


This  book  is  to  be  commended,  not  only  for  its  making  an 
important  epoch  of  history  inviting  to  the  general  reader,  but 
for  its  skillful  putting  of  the  facts  in  their  true  historical  per 
spective,  in  spite  of  the  flavor  of  romance  which  is  given  to 
the  story.  —  The  Advance. 


In  "The  Romance  of  Discovery"  Dr.  W.  E.  Griffis 
describes  the  explorations  which  have  for  their  object  chiefly 
the  occupation  of  new  territory.  Of  course  it  deals  chiefly  with 
the  expeditions  hither  from  different  European  countries.  It 
is  written  in  the  author's  familiar  spirited  and  enjoyable 
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able  form,  and  is  thoroughly  readable  throughout,  which 
cannot  be  said  of  all  such  books.  —  The  Congregntionalist. 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  AMER- 
ICAN   COLONIZATION: 

HOW  THE  FOUNDATION  STONES 
OF  OUR  HISTORY  WERE  LAID 


This  is  a  volume  that  will  be  of  unending  interest  to  any 
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While  it  is  all  history,  it  is  not  all  of  history. —  Bookseller, 
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THE        ROMANCE 
OF       CONQUEST: 

THE    STORY    OF   AMERICAN    EXPANSION 
THROUGH    ARMS    AND     DIPLOMACY 

The  book  is  splendidly  written,  and  is  a  distinct  addition  to 
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AN  HISTORICAL   NOVEL 

A  SON  OF~~THE" 
REVOLUTION 

IN     THE     DAYS     OF 
BURR'S  CONSPIRACY 

By  Elbridge  S.  Brooks 
301  pages.    Cloth,  $7.50 


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Elbridge  S.  Brooks  has  written  nothing  better  than  "  A 
Son  of  the  Revolution."  Designed  for  boys,  it  is  so  spirited 
and  interesting,  dealing  as  it  does  with  little-known  episodes 
in  our  past  history  as  a  nation,  that  it  will  gain  many  readers 
in  the  ranks  of  the  grown  up.  It  is  really  as  the  sub-title 
says,  "an  historical  novel"  of  the  days  of  Aaron  Burr,  when 
he  was  conspiring  to  create  a  western  empire.  A  young 
fellow  full  of  enthusiasm  and  patriotism,  named  Tom  Ed 
wards,  comes  under  the  fascination  of  Burr,  and  works  with 
him  for  quite  a  period  before  considering  his  true  aims  and 
real  character.  When  the  day  of  awakening  comes,  the  fight 
with  his  conscience  is  thrilling.  No  better  book  for  boys 
can  be  mentioned,  nor  one  so  rich  in  lessons  of  true  patri 
otism.  —  The  Publisher1  s  Weekly. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


Form  L9-32m-8,'58(5876s4)444 


^™RN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


PS 


176U  Pathfinders  of 
G86p — the  revolution 


